The extent of the buildings on the site of St Augustine's Abbey which were built prior to AD 1500.

"Between 1983 and 1996 seventeen excavations, evaluations and watching/recording briefs were undertaken by Canterbury Archaeological Trust (CAT) within the grounds of Canterbury Christ Church University College… In 1996 CAT produced an interim assessment (Hicks 1996) [24] of the potential of the archive at that date. The remit of the document was to assess the quantity, quality and research potential of all the stratigraphic and finds data recovered by that time. It and included a costed recommendation for the post-excavation analysis and publication of the results of the work. Since then the stratigraphic report on the 1995 excavation has been completed (CCC95) and a major excavation (CCC96) undertaken. The aim of this report is to incorporate the results of the more recent work into the 1996 assessment, and to present the revised document to CCCUC and EH for their consideration." (1)

"Activity in the area increased significantly towards the end of the thirteenth century when a number of large industrial features were constructed. These included a bronze casting pit, a massive double-flued furnace, a lime kiln, a tanning pit, a drying or malting oven, a deep circular foundation of unknown function, and a series of tanks and linking ducts… A major change in the appearance of the area took place at the very end of the thirteenth, or at the beginning of the fourteenth, century, when a new Outer Court was constructed over the remains of the industrial features. Substantial parts of this complex have been revealed by excavation, in particular the Cellarer’s range in the south, and the Bakehouse / Brewhouse range in the north…During the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries further buildings were added to the complex, particularly to the north of the Bakehouse / Brewhouse range, while others were modified…Evidence for the dismantling of the Abbey buildings and their subsequent conversion to a royal palace following the dissolution is not well represented in the archaeological record of the seventeen sites. The most important evidence derives from dumps of demolition rubble and ‘occupation’ debris that appear to have been thrown into a large feature located to the north of the Bakehouse / Brewhouse range during, or soon after, the dismantling of the Outer Court buildings." (1)


"In 1309, the land was walled and redeveloped to form a new outer service court for the abbey. Included in this development were service buildings surrounding a cobbled outer court. All of these buildings have been located by excavation. They consist of a cellarer’s hall, a timber barn, a bakehouse and a brewhouse. The western gable of the latter still stands to the east of Coleridge House. To the north of the service ranges lay the abbey’s vineyard and orchard, planted in 1320." (2)

<1> Hicks, Martin and Houliston, Mark, 1999, Archaeological Excavations at Canterbury Christ Church College. Assessment report on excavations conducted between 1983-1996 (Unpublished document). SKE31574.

<2> Hicks, Martin, 1996, Archaeological Excavations at Canterbury Christ Church College. Assessment Report on Excavations conducted between 1983-1995 (Unpublished document). SKE31570.