Priory Church, Amesbury

A new priory church was built between 1177 and 1186 and this seems to have been the 'great church' as later a second church was built. The great church consisted of a nave that was 120 feet long, a chancel 51 feet long and north and south transepts of 39 feet and 40 feet respectively. All these had pitched lead roofs. The vestry was 22 feet long with a flat lead roof while there were two chapels, one to our Lady (32 feet long) and the other to St. John. There was an octagonal steeple that was timber framed and coated with lead, which had four bells. On the dissolution this was sold to Lord Hertford who stripped and melted the lead and sold off other materials. The spire was pulled down in April 1541 but the church was not completely demolished as Lord Hertford was still taking stone and lead from it in 1560. The priory and other buildings were mostly on the site of the present Amesbury Abbey.