St. Mary's is the oldest parish in Nottingham. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book but the foundation is thought to date from Saxon times. The main body of the present Church (the third on the site) dates from the end of the reign of Edward III (1377) to that of Henry VII (1485-1509), the entire nave being finished before 1475. Major restoration of the church from 1843 - 1848. It is the Civic Church of the city and also the University Church for the University of Nottingham.

The original settlement of Nottingham was around the present St. Mary's Church and covered about 39 acres in the area which achieved fame in later centuries as the Lace Market. By 1066 it was a semi-agricultural town with a population of between 600 and 1,000. A rocky ridge, to the west was chosen by William the Conqueror as the site of the wooden fortress. The Saxons were spared the loss of houses and property rights which so often accompanied castle building at this time. A Norman borough grew up in the shelter of the Castle, leaving the Saxons largely undisturbed in their borough on St. Mary's Hill.

Nottingham Castle represented the base of the King's power in the Midlands and North, as it controlled the bridge over the River Trent, where a major road to the north crossed the river. Socially, the castle was a favourite royal residence throughout the medieval period as it provided access to Sherwood Forest for hunting. It was from Nottingham that Richard III rode out to meet the army of Henry Tudor, and his own death, on Bosworth Field in 1485.

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history 1843 - 1864

Nottinghamshire Archives