High Haswell Chapel 300m south east of Low Haswell

Reasons for Designation

A medieval chapel is a building, usually rectangular, containing a range of furnishings and fittings appropriate for Christian worship in the pre- Reformation period. Chapels were designed for congregational worship and were generally divided into two main parts: the nave, which provided accommodation for the laity, and the chancel, which was the main domain of the priest and contained the principal altar. Around 4000 parochial chapels were built between the 12th and 17th centuries as subsidiary places of worship built for the convenience of parishioners who lived at a distance from the main parish church. Other chapels were built as private places of worship by manorial lords and lie near or within manor houses, castles or other high-status residences. Chantry chapels were built and maintained by endowment and were established for the singing of masses for the soul of the founder. Some chapels possessed burial grounds. Unlike parish churches, the majority of which remain in ecclesiastical use, chapels were often abandoned as their communities and supporting finances declined or disappeared. Many chantry chapels disappeared after the dissolution of their supporting communities in the 1540s. Chapels, like parish churches, have always been major features of the landscape. A significant number of surviving examples are identified as being nationally important. The sites of abandoned chapels, where positively identified, are particularly worthy of statutory protection as they were often left largely undisturbed and thus retain important information about the nature and date of their use up to their abandonment.

Although there are no visible remains of High Haswell Chapel above ground, important archaeological deposits relating to the chapel's construction and use will be preserved below the ground surface.

Details

The monument includes the site of a medieval chapel, occupying a platform on the western area of the field known as Chapel Garth, immediately to the north west of High Haswell village. The building was of stone, measuring approximately 10m by 20m, without aisles. The manor of High Haswell first appears in charters of the early 13th century. The Treasury of the Church of Durham contains a vast collection of title deeds relating to the several estates of the family of Claxton. A proportion of these refer to the manor and lands of Great Haswell. The earliest of these deeds, dating to c.1300, is a grant of Eustace Fitz-Walter stating that, "Wm de Hessewell granted to Hugh Modi of Hessewelle, one acre in Falufield, lying in two places, viz upon Holilawe, and near Tuffewell; and as much of Tuffewell Meer as belonged to the grantor, on condition that Hugh should maintain one lamp perpetually burning within the Chapel of Hessewell, on every Sunday and festival." The chapel at Haswell appears later, in the Chantry Survey of 1547-8.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

34584

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Surtees, R, The Victoria History of the County of Durham: Volume I, (1979), 17
Turnbull, , Jones, , Archaeology of the Coal Measures, (1979), 167

End of official list entry

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