Tudor Brick fragments

Social History (Museum of St Albans)

Bricks and tiles were made in large quantities during Roman times in this area, but after the Roman period, production largely ended. The buildings of the Roman town were quarried over the centuries for material for reuse elsewhere, for example in the Abbey and the church of St Michael’s. In Tudor times, brick began to be manufactured more commonly again. The bricks were made by hand and slightly irregular compared to modern machine-made bricks. Most buildings in Tudor St Albans continued to be timber-framed, but outside the town, the very expensive homes of wealthy noblemen and courtiers, for example Sir Francis Bacon at Gorhambury and Sir Richard Lee at Sopwell, were built of stone and brick. Both of these houses were sufficiently grand for Queen Elizabeth to visit them during her progresses around the country (1564: Sopwell; 1572 and 1577 Gorhambury).

135 transparency

Kate Warren

1) Photo Studio

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