Saint Mary De Castro

NEXT to where Leicester Castle stood, and within the boundary of what was the castle's bailey (defensive enclosure), lies the church of St Mary de Castro.

Its name signifies, in Latin, that it was "of the castle," as opposed to a nearby abbey, St Mary de Pratis, or "of the meadow."

Consecrated in 1107 and greatly expanded less than 60 years later, St Mary de Castro probably began as a church after being converted from an already established college 

Canterbury Tales author Geoffrey Chaucer is believed to have wed Philippa Roet, a lady-in-waiting to Edward III's wife Philippa of Hainault, in the church in 1366.

Four-year-old Henry VI was knighted here in 1426 while the so-called Parliament of Bats - attendees were banned from carrying swords, and so armed themselves with stout wooden sticks - was held in the Great Hall of the castle.

As this photo by NotFromUtrecht on Wikipedia shows, the church had a spire until it was declared unsafe and was demolished in 2014