Former Chapel Dedicated To St Columbanus, Now Ruin, In The Grounds Of Kings Of Wessex School At Ngr St 4573 5315

The former chapel dedicated to St Columbanus, now a ruin, dates from the early 14th century and is located in the grounds of Kings of Wessex School. The structure is built of random rubble and has an oblong plan with diagonal corner buttresses, although the north-east buttress is missing. The north and south walls have been lowered to about one metre above the ground, while the end walls remain intact except for the upper portions of the gables, and the roof is completely missing.

On the western elevation, there is a door opening framed by a chamfered stone surround with a pointed arch head, above which is a blocked window featuring deep splays and a segmental pointed rere-arch on the inside. The east wall also has a blocked window, retaining a single trefoiled head of tracery, deep splays, and a cusped rere-arch. Additionally, there are remains of a pent-roofed single-storey outshut at the east end, which also has a missing roof, and a massive buttress is present at the centre of the east wall. The chapel is situated adjacent to the site of a former Saxon royal palace.