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Waltham Abbey Church
The Abbey Church of Waltham Holy Cross and St Lawrence, also known as Waltham Abbey or Waltham Abbey Church, is the parish church of the town of Waltham Abbey, Essex, England. It has been a place of worship since the 7th century. The present building dates mainly from the early 12th century and is an example of Norman architecture. To the east of the existing church are traces of an enormous eastward enlargement of the building, begun following the re-foundation of the abbey in 1177. In the Late Middle Ages, Waltham was one of the largest church buildings in England and a major site of pilgrimage; in 1540 it was the last religious community to be closed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. It is still the parish church for the town, and is a grade I listed building.
The monastic buildings and those parts of the church east of the crossing were demolished at the Dissolution, and the Norman crossing tower and transepts collapsed in 1553. The present-day church consists of the nave of the Norman abbey church, the 14th-century lady chapel and west wall, and a 16th-century west tower, added after the dissolution.
King Harold Godwinson, who died at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, is said to be buried in the present churchyard.
Archaeological investigations between 1984 and 1991 have revealed a much earlier origin of the site than had previously been believed. There is evidence for five distinct churches at Waltham.
Traces of the flint rubble foundations of a 7th-century wooden church have been found under the choir of the present building; an associated burial has been radiocarbon dated to between 590 and 690. A proposed date of circa 610 would place its construction in the reign of Sæberht of Essex, who was noted for his church-building activities. Other finds included a 7th-century Kentish jewellery book-clasp depicting eagles grasping a fish.
During the reign of King Offa of Mercia, whose rule extended to the Kingdom of Essex in the late 8th century, a building of Barnack stone was constructed around the earlier wooden church. It was half the length of the present building, and was a porticus-type church with chambers along each side of the nave.[incomplete short citation] It was intended as a minster serving several communities in the area.
At the beginning of the 11th century, the church and manor of Waltham were held by an Anglo-Danish thegn called Tovi the Proud. A legend, recorded in the 12th-century De Inventione Sanctœ Crucis Nostrœ ("The Discovery of our Holy Cross") or "Waltham Chronicle", relates that, in about 1016, the blacksmith at another estate belonging to Tovi, at Montacute near Glastonbury, found a large black flint (or marble) crucifix buried at the top of a hill, after a dream. Tovi had the cross loaded onto an ox-cart, but the oxen would only go in one direction and continued every day until they reached Waltham, a journey of some 150 miles. This Holy Rood or Cross was installed at the church and soon became the subject of pilgrimage. Tovi is said to have rebuilt the church, but modern evidence suggests that he probably retained the 8th-century fabric of the building.
After Tovi's death, his son fell into debt and the estate passed to King Edward the Confessor. He then gave it to Harold Godwinson (later King Harold II), who rebuilt, refounded and richly endowed the church, which was dedicated in 1060; a legend says that this was because in his childhood, he had been miraculously cured of paralysis by the Holy Cross. The new church was placed under the control of a dean and a college of twelve married priests. Evidence suggests that stone and some of the foundations of the previous church were re-used for the new building, which had a nave the same length as the present one, aisles, a large transept and a small eastern apse.
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Waltham Abbey Church
The Abbey Church of Waltham Holy Cross and St Lawrence, also known as Waltham Abbey or Waltham Abbey Church, is the parish church of the town of Waltham Abbey, Essex, England. It has been a place of worship since the 7th century. The present building dates mainly from the early 12th century and is an example of Norman architecture. To the east of the existing church are traces of an enormous eastward enlargement of the building, begun following the re-foundation of the abbey in 1177. In the Late Middle Ages, Waltham was one of the largest church buildings in England and a major site of pilgrimage; in 1540 it was the last religious community to be closed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. It is still the parish church for the town, and is a grade I listed building.
The monastic buildings and those parts of the church east of the crossing were demolished at the Dissolution, and the Norman crossing tower and transepts collapsed in 1553. The present-day church consists of the nave of the Norman abbey church, the 14th-century lady chapel and west wall, and a 16th-century west tower, added after the dissolution.
King Harold Godwinson, who died at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, is said to be buried in the present churchyard.
Archaeological investigations between 1984 and 1991 have revealed a much earlier origin of the site than had previously been believed. There is evidence for five distinct churches at Waltham.
Traces of the flint rubble foundations of a 7th-century wooden church have been found under the choir of the present building; an associated burial has been radiocarbon dated to between 590 and 690. A proposed date of circa 610 would place its construction in the reign of Sæberht of Essex, who was noted for his church-building activities. Other finds included a 7th-century Kentish jewellery book-clasp depicting eagles grasping a fish.
During the reign of King Offa of Mercia, whose rule extended to the Kingdom of Essex in the late 8th century, a building of Barnack stone was constructed around the earlier wooden church. It was half the length of the present building, and was a porticus-type church with chambers along each side of the nave.[incomplete short citation] It was intended as a minster serving several communities in the area.
At the beginning of the 11th century, the church and manor of Waltham were held by an Anglo-Danish thegn called Tovi the Proud. A legend, recorded in the 12th-century De Inventione Sanctœ Crucis Nostrœ ("The Discovery of our Holy Cross") or "Waltham Chronicle", relates that, in about 1016, the blacksmith at another estate belonging to Tovi, at Montacute near Glastonbury, found a large black flint (or marble) crucifix buried at the top of a hill, after a dream. Tovi had the cross loaded onto an ox-cart, but the oxen would only go in one direction and continued every day until they reached Waltham, a journey of some 150 miles. This Holy Rood or Cross was installed at the church and soon became the subject of pilgrimage. Tovi is said to have rebuilt the church, but modern evidence suggests that he probably retained the 8th-century fabric of the building.
After Tovi's death, his son fell into debt and the estate passed to King Edward the Confessor. He then gave it to Harold Godwinson (later King Harold II), who rebuilt, refounded and richly endowed the church, which was dedicated in 1060; a legend says that this was because in his childhood, he had been miraculously cured of paralysis by the Holy Cross. The new church was placed under the control of a dean and a college of twelve married priests. Evidence suggests that stone and some of the foundations of the previous church were re-used for the new building, which had a nave the same length as the present one, aisles, a large transept and a small eastern apse.
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