Leicester Bishops Palace

Description

Leland writes "St. Margaretes is thereby, the fairest paroche chirch of Leicester, wher ons was cathedrale chirch and therby the Bishop of Lincoln had a palace, where of a little yet standith"

Before the major administrative changes of the Norman Kings, bishops had their seats, their primary churches and residences, which they used on their itineraries. Leicester had such a bishop and such a place of residence, St. Margarets, with its episcopal palace or court, where the bishop came to administer this portion of his enlarged diocese, and where he sat in judgement over ecclesiastical disputes and settlements, from which he administered the Leicestershire portion of his secular administration and landed estate. (Williams)

It has been suggested that there is documentary evidence that the bishop of Lincoln might have had a palace to the south of St Margaret's Church. The evidence is fairly thin, and documents suggest that the bishop held property in within the town, rather than just outside it. (Leicester City Council Heritage Data)

Comments

In existence during the Saxon and Danish periods and probably retained as a residence in the Norman period, although the status and use of the palace must have declined when the see was fixed at Lincoln. Map reference for St Margate's Church, which, it should be noted, was outside the Roman city wall and remained outside of the medieval defences. However there are reasons for a bishop wanting to have a residence outside the political control of the town.