Vicars’ Close

In 1348, Bishop Ralph of Shrewsbury founded a college so that the Vicars Choral, the singing men of the choir, could live together communally.

He provided a hall for meals and each of the 42 vicars with his own small house. These were built on two sides of a quadrangle, with the hall at one end and later, a chapel enclosing the other end.

In the 15th century, the houses were given front gardens and the Chain Gate was built to provide a passage from the hall into the cathedral. Vicars’ Close, as the street came to be known, is the only completely medieval street in England.