Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

Site of 13th century chapel associated with Royton Manor House

Monument Types

• CHAPEL (CHAPEL, Medieval - 1200 AD to 1299 AD?)

Associated Finds

• SHERD (Neolithic - 4000 BC to 2351 BC)
• SHERD (Iron Age - 800 BC to 42 AD)

Full description

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[TQ 9053 5031] Site of [NAT] Royton Chapel. [NR] (A.D. 1256) [NAT] (1)

The manor of Royton had a free chapel annexed to the Manor House (TQ 95 SW 28) the ruins of which still remain. Through this the estate became known as Royton Chapel. (2)

Alt reference. (3)

Nothing remains to be seen of this chapel but its stones are occasionally turned up by the plough. The farmhouse is of little architectural interest externally. (4)

(TQ 90515031). Royton Chapel (NR) (Site of) (NAT) (5)

Additional bibliography. (6-7)

Various Neolithic and Iron Age finds. (8)

Excavation by the Lenham Archaeological Society c. 40 m west of this location discovered wall footings which may represent and alternitive location for the chapel (TQ 95 SW 127)

Interestingly the Andrews, Dury and Herbert map of 1769 shows a chapel at Royton and another at 'Shelve'. There may in fact have been two chapels in the area and Lesley Feakes has suggested that Royton Chapel may have been physically part of Royton Manor with Shelve Chapel being the chapel that has left the archaeological remains.

<1> OS 6" 1961 (OS Card Reference). SKE48369.

<2> The History of Kent 2 (1782) 441 (E Hasted) (OS Card Reference). SKE50361.

<3> Arch Cant 29 (1911) "Chapels in Kent" 225-6 (A Hanssey) (OS Card Reference). SKE34930.

<4> F1 CFW 18-Dec-61 (OS Card Reference). SKE42626.

<5> OS 1:10000 1971 (OS Card Reference). SKE48156.

<6> Bldgs of Eng-West Kent & the Weald 1980 379 (J Newman) (OS Card Reference). SKE38154.

<7> Field report for monument TQ 95 SW 1 - December, 1961 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4827.

<8> Lenham Archaeological Society, 2008, Various finds from Lenham - Lenham Archaeology Society (Unpublished document). SKE16597.

<9> Lenham Archaeological Society, 2006, Report on research in the vicinity of Lenham (Miscellaneous Material). SKE13570.

<10> Lenham Archaeological Society, 2011, Discovering Ancient Lenham: Volume 1 Edition 3 (Serial). SKE16752.

<11> Lenham Archaeological Society, 2018, Late Iron Age Settlement at Royton-Mountcastle, Lenham Heath, Kent (Unpublished document). SKE32557.

<12> Lenham Archaeological Society, 2018, Late Iron Age Settlement at Royton-Mountcastle, Lenham Heath, Kent, Archaeological survey and excavations (Unpublished document). SKE52887.

Sources and further reading

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