(TR 15215827) Site of St Gregorys Priory; 11th century secular collegeof 12th century Augustinian Priory. (1-3) (TR 15195825, sited from plan). Graveyard (1084-1612) of St Gregory's Priory, 85 to 88 Northgate. (4-5) St Gregory's Priory, Canterbury, was assumed to be a new priory founded by Lanfranc, in the 1080s to act as a body of canons regular to look after the men and women of St John's Hospital [TR 15 NE 4]. Comparing entries in the Domesday Book and Domesday Monochorum it is likely that the Domesday Book "is the last record of an Anglo-Saxon gild of priests that was taken over and refounded by Lanfranc" in 1087. A complete area-excavation of the core of the site was undertaken in 1988-9 (see plan). Two Anglo-Saxon churches have been uncovered; the larger to the north, must be the gild church of perhaps the 9th or 10th century, while the very small two celled church to the south is perhaps 7th century, although a late Roman date is just possible. It is unlikely that St Gregory's became an Augustinian Priory until the early 12th century. "This is also perhaps the time when St Gregory's first acquired a regular claustral layout of buildings, although an earlier date is also possible." (6) Additional bibliography. (7-8)

Re-development of the site began in 1994, and was based on a piled foundation to protect the site. A watching brief of the foundation cuttings for the new development was undertaken and uncovered a post-medieval wall, dated the 16th century, probably some time after 1573, when Sir John Boys enclosed the grounds with a new wall. (9)

Additional bibliography (10)

An evaluation carried out in 2003 identified a medieval flint gravel filled wall foundation running NW-SE, which potentially represented a courtyard wall. The gravel wall may have formed a boundary between the main claustral complex and the northern precinct area. Other interpretations of the wall include it potentially being associated with 16th century housing fronting onto Northgate.
The remains of two buildings were also identified through the evaluation. The first was represented by a "north-west to south-east aligned gravel wall foundation, overlain by the remnants of a robbed-out chalk and flint wall was identified. This wall (was) abutted by flint gravel metalling to the south, external garden soils to the west, and an internal mortar, flint and chalk floor consolidation to the north" (from the report, 11).
The second building comprised "a chalk and flint wall footing capped by a tile wall plate, aligned roughly east to west, and abutted to the north by a clay floor" (from the report, 11). This building has been interpreted as either a monastic foundation, or mid-16th century housing at Northgate.
Other features thought to be associated with priory include a metalled courtyard surface formed of flint gravel. This has been interpreted as potentially representing an extensive courtyard surface located to the north of the main buildings of the priory.
Medieval rubbish pits were also identified at the site. The lack of these features elsewhere at the site has led to the interpretation that rubbish removal generally occurred at service areas in the northern precinct of the monastery.
An undated post-hole was also identified at the site.
Other finds revealed during the excavation include a single undated prehistoric sherd, 4 residual Roman pottery sherds, 1 residual Anglo-Saxon sherd, and medieval pottery sherds. (11)

<1> Map of Canterbury 1752 (Doidge) (OS Card Reference). SKE46511.

<2> VCH Kent 2 1926 142-4 (sic) (OS Card Reference). SKE50946.

<3> Med Rel Houses Eng and Wales 1953 211 (D Knowles and RN Hadcock) (OS Card Reference). SKE46791.

<4> Arch Cant 96 1980 297-304 plans (P Blockley) (OS Card Reference). SKE36244.

<5> Md Arch 25 1981 189 (SM Youngs and J Clark) (OS Card Reference). SKE46626.

<6> St Gregorys Priory Canterbury 1989 1-16 (T Tatton-Brown) (OS Card Reference). SKE49610.

<7> MRH 1971 139 152 (D Knowles and RN Hadcock) (OS Card Reference). SKE47431.

<8> Canterbury's Archaeology 1987-8 29-32 (P Bennett and M Sparks) 33 (MJ Hicks) (OS Card Reference). SKE38574.

<9> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 1994, Watching brief at St Gregory's Priory Development, Northgate, Canterbury. Report 1: Southern area (Unpublished document). SKE8172.

<10> 199, Arch Cant 108 (1990) 91-151 (OS Card Reference). SKE54053.

<11> MOLA, 2019, NORTHGATE GARAGE, Canterbury, CT1, County of Kent: Historic environment assessment (Unpublished document). SKE55685.