St Martin le Grand

When the Normans set fire to Dover in 1066, much of the Saxon church and monastery was destroyed.  However, being a religious people, they re-built the church in Norman style and restored the Canons.  However, the Norman Archbishops were not happy about the Saxon Canons of St Martin being outside their control and Archbishop Corboil induced King Henry I to set them adrift and established the Priory, a religious house under stricter monastic rule.

For the next 440 years, up to the reign of Henry VIII, the precincts were used as a market place.

"It will be seen ... that the church consisted of a nave of unknown extent, which occupied a considerable part of the open land at the rear, which, after the destruction of the church, was used as a burial ground for St. Mary's parish; a transept, 25ft. in depth, over which there was doubtless a central tower; and, beyond this, extending about 80ft. towards the Market place, was the apsidal choir, ending flush with the present frontages.  The choir had three projecting apsidal chapels, one in the centre, and the others respectively facing the north-east and south-east."  (J.B.J. 1907)

"The walls were lined with Caen stone, a building material which came much into vogue immediately after the Conquest.  Possibly, the nave of the church survived the fire of 1066, and the Saxon work being old and inferior to that of the Normans, would account for that part of the fabric having totally disappeared.  The ground plan only shows the design and arrangement of the transepts and the choir, and a very small portion of the north wall of the nave.  The faint parts of the plan represent the portions of the foundations where there was not one stone upon another, but the outline has been continued to complete the design.  A curved wall of considerable height, usually called a tower, was the southern part of the central apsidal chapel of the choir, and the remains, showing the spring of the vaulting, indicate that it consisted of two stories.  he narrow 4ft. space, showing white, through the middle of the central apsidal chapel into the interior of the ruins, was made - and specially mentioned in a deed - in the time of Queen Elizabeth, and was then used as a passage for the funerals to pass up when the land in the rear was used as a burial ground.  That passage has disappeared.  A projecting mass of masonry of a similar shape to the piece of the central chapel used to be seen, covered with a sloping modern roof on the southern side, as shown in the old print, and a similar fragment stood above the houses on the north side.  These were parts of the north-east and south-east apsidal chapels.  There used to be a small portion of the outer wall of the north transept seen from Market Street.  Three of the interior arches of the north side of the choir were standing in 1840, with the triforium and a small part of the clerestory over it.  A large portion of the piers of the arch which was supposed to have supported the central tower was also standing at that time.  The piers were solid blocks of flint rubble, with Caen stone dressings, about eight feet wide by six feet deep.  All the arches were semi-circular, relieved by only one order, which was carried down the side of the piers.  The remains of this ancient church are interesting as being a rare example of the three projecting chapels at the east end of the choir being left unaltered.  It also illustrates the discovery made by the late Canon Scott Robertson that the three parishes of St. Martin, St. Nicholas, and St. John the Baptist had their churches under one roof -  the southern chapel containing the altar of the church of St. Nicholas, the central one that of St. Martin, and the northern one that of St. John."  (J.B.J. 1907)