NHER 406 (Monument record) - Remains of St William in the Wood's chapel, Mousehold Heath

Site of St Williams in the Wood.
The chapel, originally founded as St Catherine's (see (S1)), was refounded in 1168 (27 April) following the supposed martyrdom of St William of Norwich in 1144. The chapel was founded on the site where the body was found. It was served as a parochial chapel of Norwich Cathedral Priory. The date of the dissolution is not clear, but in 1550 the site was leased out by the Dean and Chapter to William Bleverhaysset as 'the chapel-yard called St William in the Wood' (S13).

Plan by J. Kirkpatrick in NCM Art Department (1740.76.94).

Large (around 100m by 130m) trapezoidal, banked enclosure; with the earthworks surviving to a height of up to about 1m. Within this enclosure are the remains of a possible building platform. The remains are incomplete and it may merely be an inner enclosure.

August 1978. Field Visit.
Remains considerably overgrown by small trees and vegetation.
M. Atkin (NCM).

See file for further details.

March 1996. Field Observation.
Examination and back-filling of a series of animal burrows which had disturbed the structure of the chapel.
No finds retrieved.
See site records in file.
S. Manifold (NAU) 11 April 1996.

Brian Ayers comments that he does not believe these were animal burrows. Flint footings had been exposed and dug out on the line of the inner enclosure, suggesting treasure hunters. Photographs taken.
Information from B. Ayers (NLA).
E. Rose (NLA), 24 July 1996.

(S2) says the last offering made at the chapel was in 1506 so one assumes it vanished soon afterwards.
E. Rose (NLA), 5 January 2001.

2002 or thereabouts.
A shallow hole noted with freshly-disturbed soil and a piece of moulded ashlar of possible 15th century date (not collected).
D. Gurney (HES), 18 September 2012.

June 2003.
Area of chapel densely covered by nettles, brambles, elder and hawthorn. A few mature trees, mostly oak. Cover less under trees. Estimate to be obtained for clearance of undergrowth under Section 17 agreement.
H. Paterson (A&E), 26 August 2003.

May 2004. Visit.
Scrub has been cut back, 1 foot to 1 foot 6 inches (30cm to 45cm) from ground. Cut items stacked off site for wildlife. Some regeneration of bramble and bracken. Nettles thick to north. Scatter of flint and pebbles seen in area of bare soil. Strimming of regrowth will be undertaken later in the summer under Section 17 prescription.
H. Paterson (A&E), 31 August 2004.

Photographs taken 2000 (S3) and conservation statement (S4) in file.

For an article on the legend of St William, see (S5).
D. Gurney (NLA), 2 February 2009.

2007. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometry and resistivity surveys carried out in expected location of St William's chapel in order to identify surviving structure remains and compare the effectiveness of the two techniques. Neither survey managed to conclusively identify structural remains associated with the chapel, although the magnetometer survey did reveal a number of potentially archaeologically significant anomalies. The resistivity survey was less successful, principally due to the site's topography and geology and the presence of dense vegetation.
See undergraduate dissertation (S12) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 9 October 2018.

April 2009.
Five year Section 17 agreement signed, including funding for an earthwork survey.
See (S6).
D. Robertson (HES), 7 May 2015.

February 2010. Earthwork Survey.
The earthworks consist of two concentric banked and ditched enclosures located on land gently sloping southwards. Within the earthworks are mounds and depressions of flint rubble which are likely to be the remains of buildings. Three north-south aligned banks originally linked to the southern boundaries of the two enclosures were observed. A short length of former tramway survives as a cutting close to the south-east corner of the site with an extraction pit on the southern boundary and gaps in the north-south boundary from a former trackway that crossed the heath. The central features are probably the remains of the chapel and the two adjacent structures could be the associated monks quarters. The inner enclosure and the building platforms are possibly contemporary. The outer enclosure is likely to be a boundary possibly enclosing the churchyard and a small feature in the north-western corner could be a former entrance.
See report (S9) for further details.
S. Howard (HES), 11 May 2011.

April 2010. Norfolk NMP.
Banks and ditches relating to the chapel described above are visible as earthworks and cropmarks on aerial photographs (S7-S8). It was not possible to define the features any more clearly than those depicted on the Ordnance Survey map, and they have therefore not been mapped.
E. Bales (NMP), April 2010.

August 2012. Field Observation.
Site visited to investigate report of heritage crime.
Disturbance by mountain bikers reported by members of the public.
Two areas of disturbance seen, both the result of mountain biking.
See damage report (S10) and local press articles (S11) for further details.
D. Robertson (HES), 9 August 2012.

May 2015. Interpretation panel installed.
D. Robertson (HES), 7 May 2015.