Marmion's Well
MARMION'S WELL
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1370970
- Date first listed:
- 10-Mar-1988
- List Entry Name:
- Marmion's Well
- Statutory Address:
- MARMION'S WELL
Location
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Images of England Project
- Date:
- 2006-02-24
- Reference:
- IOE01/15204/11
- Rights:
- © Mr Brian Rogers. Source: Historic England Archive
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1370970
- Date first listed:
- 10-Mar-1988
- Date of most recent amendment:
- 08-Nov-2017
- List Entry Name:
- Marmion's Well
- Statutory Address 1:
- MARMION'S WELL
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- MARMION'S WELL
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- Northumberland (Unitary Authority)
- Parish:
- Branxton
- National Grid Reference:
- NT8917237520
Summary
Stone well, 1935.
Reasons for Designation
Marmion's Well is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
Architectural interest
* An attractive and well-executed stone well incorporating a Latin cross and Celtic interlace decoration.
Historic interest
* A C19 or earlier spring head which became romantically associated with Sir Walter Scott's poem 'Marmion' and the Battle of Flodden.
Group value:
* With the Battle of Flodden registered battlefield, in which it is situated, and the Grade II-listed Church of St Paul.
History
A well at this location in Branxton is believed to have existed since at least the C19. It was described in 1911 as being a simple trough below a spring. In 1912 plans emerged to build a fountain at the site with the intention of commemorating, at a more convenient location, an earlier well on Flodden Hill erected by the Marchioness of Waterford that was romantically associated with Sir Walter Scot's poem 'Marmion'. An appeal was launched to raise £100 but the plan did not materialise. The present well-head dates from about 1935 and was constructed by Colonel Gerard Leather and built by Pattersons of Branxton.
The quotation inscribed on the face of the well head is from Sir Walter Scott's poem 'Marmion' in which the fictional knight, mortally wounded at the Battle of Flodden in 1513, is brought refreshment from a local spring.
Details
Well, 1935.
MATERIALS: sandstone and sandstone ashlar.
DESCRIPTION: the well is situated immediately to the west of Branxton Village, within a road verge. The well head comprises an upright stone slab about 1.2m high with a large round-arched opening; the upper slab is inscribed with the outline of a Latin cross and Celtic interlace design above the arch. The face of the upright slab is inscribed with a quotation from Sir Walter Scott's poem 'Marmion' (Canto 6, stanza XXX):
'Drink weary pilgrim drink and pray/For the kind soul of Sybil Grey/Who built this cross and well.'
Set within the arch is a round stone basin and set at the base is a rectangular stone basin.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
- Legacy System number:
- 237971
- Legacy System:
- LBS
Sources
Websites
Friends of Berwick and District Museum and Archives, accessed 31-07-2017 from http://www.berwickfriends.org.uk/history/branxton-flodden/
Other
BRO 912-2: description of well
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 15-Jun-2026 at 03:27:03.
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