Lidwell Chapel
| Lidwell Chapel | |
|---|---|
 West wall of the chapel | |
  Shown in Devon | |
| Alternative names | St Mary's Chapel, Lithwell Chapel, Luidwell Chapel etc. |
| General information | |
| Type | Chapel |
| Town or city | Dawlish |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 50°34′29″N 3°31′14″W / 50.574781°N 3.520642°W |
| Grid position | SX923758 |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Granite |
| Designations | Grade II Listed Building |
Lidwell Chapel, also known as St Mary's Chapel, is a medieval chapel, now in ruins, within the parish of Dawlish in Devon, England. The chapel is a Grade II listed building, and was first listed in 1951.[1]
Description[edit]
The ruins of the chapel are situated in a small wood at the base of Little Haldon, an area of heathland near the towns of Dawlish and Teignmouth. A public footpath leads down from the higher ground to the site. There is an associated holy well[2] close beside the ruin, which is now obscured. Only the west wall of the building remains standing, although the foundations of the others can be seen.[1] The ruin is surrounded with a set of iron railings, with a gate at its eastern end, beside which is a wooden sign naming the chapel.
Further down the hill is Lidwell farm, which is likely to have been named after the well with the chapel.
History[edit]
The chapel is associated with a 14th-century monk called Robert de Middlecote, whose deeds are recorded in the Register of John Grandisson, Bishop of Exeter. De Middlecote is recorded as having raped a woman in the chapel, broken into and robbed a house, and robbed numerous travellers on the nearby road between Teignmouth and Exeter on the heath.[3] A number of other supposed actions of this man are a part of the local legend which surrounds him. One is that he hosted travellers and fed them food laced with a sleep-inducing substance before killing them; he then stole any valuables that they were carrying and threw their corpses into the well.[4][5]
References[edit]
- ^ a b "REMAINS OF LIDWELL CHAPEL SITUATED ABOUT 1/4 MILE FROM LIDWELL FARM ACROSS CHAPEL FIELD, Dawlish – 1334486 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
- ^ "BBC – Devon Great Outdoors – Holy Wells Tour". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
- ^ Amery, P. F. S. (1895). "The Legend of Lithwell Chapel". Transactions of the Devonshire Association. XXVII: 62–63.
- ^ Sandles, Tim (28 March 2016). "Mad Monk | Legendary Dartmoor". Retrieved 2 May 2021.
- ^ Wilson, John Marius (1870–72). Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales.