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The Great Britain Guide

Abbeys & priories · East of England

St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds

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St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds — medieval civic church of Bury St Edmunds and one of the largest parish churches in England.

St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds, abbeys & priories in Suffolk

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Plan your visit

Typical visit
45 min–1.5 h
Nearest railway station
Bury St Edmunds · 1.3 km
  • Family-friendly
  • Limited wheelchair access

About

St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds is an abbey, priory, or monastic site in the United Kingdom. Heritage designation: Grade I listed building. Affiliated with Anglicanism. Part of Bury St Edmunds Abbey. Wikidata describes it as: "medieval civic church of Bury St Edmunds and one of the largest parish churches in England". Coordinates: 52.2424°, 0.7172°.

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Heritage listing

St Mary's Church is the civic church of Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, England and is one of the largest parish churches in England. It claims to have the second longest nave (after Christchurch Priory), and the largest West Window of any parish church in the country. It was part of the abbey complex and originally was one of three large churches in the town (the others being St James, now St Edmundsbury Cathedral, and St Margaret's, now gone).

From the Historic England List Entry under OGL v3.

From the Wikipedia article

St Mary's Church is the civic church of Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, England and is one of the largest parish churches in England. It claims to have the second longest nave (after Christchurch Priory), and the largest West Window of any parish church in the country. It was part of the abbey complex and originally was one of three large churches in the town (the others being St James, now St Edmundsbury Cathedral, and St Margaret's, now gone).

Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.

Background

History

The present church is not the first building to stand on the site, the first being built in the seventh century, founded by King Sigeberht. The second church was built in the early twelfth century by Abbot Anselm to replace the previous church of St Mary which was demolished to make space for the construction of the south wing of the Abbey Church. However, nothing survives of the Norman church and the oldest part of the existing building is the decorated chancel (c. 1290). There was a major renovation between the 14th and 16th centuries and it is at this point that the nave, its aisles and the tower were built. It is also at this time that Mary Tudor, Queen of France, favourite sister of…

Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Coordinates
52.2424, 0.7172
County
Suffolk
District
West Suffolk
Parish
Bury St Edmunds
Postcode
IP33 1RT
Parliamentary constituency
Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket
Nearest railway station
Bury St Edmunds1.3 km
Official site
www.wearechurch.net

Sources

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Frequently asked questions

Where is St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds?
St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds is in Suffolk, East of England, United Kingdom (postcode IP33 1RT), in the parish of Bury St Edmunds.
Is St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds a listed building?
St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds is officially recognised as Grade I listed building listed.
How do I get to St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds?
The nearest railway station is Bury St Edmunds, about 1.3 km away. Drivers can navigate to postcode IP33 1RT.