10/08/2024
HOSPITAL OF ST. JAMES - DUNWICH
Leprosy was an infectious disease much feared in the middle ages, spreading to Britain by the 5th century AD and was uncommon until the 11th century when a new wave of the disease appeared, probably brought back from the Near East by Crusaders and as a busy international port, Dunwich would have been particularly at risk.
Those who caught leprosy were condemned, not just to a disfiguring and incurable disease, but to a life of isolation, forbidden to work or mix with the rest of society. They were regarded with a mixture of pity and horror. The medieval Church saw it as part of its duty to care for the sick and the old and l***r hospitals were set up all over the country.
The Hospital of St. James was founded in the reign of Richard 1st in 1206 and was maintained with rent from land given by a Walter de Riboff. This income paid for the building of the hospital and chapel together with the maintenance of the l***rs, the salary of a Master to run the hospital and a chaplain.
The whole building, over 100 feet long, was built of stone brought from Caen in Normandy, and of local flint. With repairs made with various types of stone salvaged from other buildings in the town which were about to disappear into the sea.
The round-headed arcading is typical of the Norman style of the 12th century. To the left is the north wall of the hospital. This would have been an open hall, 60 feet long and divided up along both sides into cubicles, perhaps with curtains or wooden screens but open enough for each occupant to be able to see into the chapel at the end and participate in worship, even if they were unable to get out of bed.
As Dunwich declined in importance in the 13th and 14th centuries, with erosion and outbreaks of plague, the Hospital of St. James became less and less viable.
The last l***r was buried there in 1536, but it carried on as a more general hospital for the aged and infirm.
Today all that remains of this once important feature of Dunwich is the ruin you now see in the churchyard.
