THE PRIORY


Description:  The remains of a Franciscan Friary founded in 1338 and suppressed in 1538. Although substantial elements of the southern claustral range were retained as a private dwelling, the buried evidence for the surrounding buildings and other features of the friary now lie within the grounds of this house, misleadingly termed 'The Priory'. The west wing of The Priory contains evidence of a free standing hall, the earliest known building on the site. This may have been built in the early 14th century, although some architectural details suggest an origin in the 13th century and point to the possibility of a pre-existing structure, perhaps a messuage. By the later 14th or early 15th century the hall had been converted into a guest wing, and it is the architecture of this period which largely characterises the present house. The house also conatins elements of the cloister walk and the frater. The ornate 15th century arcade, which formerly faced into the cloister garth, was retained as a principle feature of the external walls on the east side of the central hall and the north side of the eastern wing, and is still visible. Small scale excavations and chance discoveries within the grounds of The Priory have revealed the location of the friary church to the north of the eastern end of the eastern wing. After the suppression of the Friary it became a private house in 1544. As the property passed through various owners it saw periods of major refurbishment in the mid 18th and late 19th centuries but most notably in the 1850s by the architect George Godwin. Residential use ceased during the First World War when the house served as a Red Cross hospital. In the 1920s the house was converted to offices for the former Ware Urban District Council and was restored as local council offices, community centre and restaurant in 1993-4 by the architects Donald Insall and Associates. Scheduled and Listed Grade I.

Country:  ENGLAND

County:  HERTFORDSHIRE

District:  EAST HERTFORDSHIRE

Parish:  WARE

Grid Reference:   TL35551434

Map Reference:  [EPSG:27700] 535550, 214340

Period:  MODERN, POST MEDIEVAL, 1338, 1338 - 1432, 1538, 1544, 1850 - 1859, 1867 - 1899, 1920 - 1929, 1993 - 1994, MEDIEVAL, 1066 - 1338, 1338 - 1538, 1733 - 1766, 1914 - 1918

Subject:  ARCHITECTURAL COMPONENT, CHURCH, CLOISTER, COMMUNITY CENTRE, EXTANT BUILDING, FRANCISCAN FRIARY, GUEST HOUSE, HOSPITAL, HOUSE, LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICE, MESSUAGE, REFECTORY, RESTAURANT, SUB SURFACE DEPOSIT

Identifiers: 
[ADS] Depositor Id: TL 31 SE 6
[ADS] Import RCN: NMR_NATINV-367576

People Involved: 
[Publisher] Historic England