St. Mary's Churchyard and Priory in Bungay, Suffolk

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Get directions Bungay, Suffolk, England

Coordinates: 52.45551, 1.43758
Cemetery ID:

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St. Mary's was built as the church to a Benedictine priory. This was established in the late 12th century, but the main part of the present church dates from the 14th–15th century. The Domesday Survey records a church dedicated to the Holy Cross in the town, and it is thought that St Mary's stands on the site of an earlier Saxon church. The priory was closed in 1536 as a result of the dissolution of the monasteries, St Mary's became a parish church, and a grammar school was established in one of the priory's chapels. The church was damaged in a great fire in the town in 1688. The roof of the south aisle and some of the fittings, including benches and possibly the pulpit, were burnt, but the roof of the nave was not damaged. The south aisle was re-roofed in 1699, and the church re-opened in 1701. In 1879 the tower was repaired, and the rest of the church was restored, at a cost of £3,000 (equivalent to £310,000 in 2020). During the 20th century the size of the congregation declined and the church was declared redundant. Its benefice has been united with that of Holy Trinity Church. A society, The Friends of St Mary's, cleans the church and organizes concerts and other events in the church.