SteepHill

On certian days of the week in medieval times, steep hill was bustling with street markets.They had earlier been held in churchyards, until ordered out into the street. permission had to be obtained from the monarch to hold them, and traders paid
for this privilege.

The market on steep hill specialised mostly in foodstuffs. Fish was sold closest to the top, the meat and corn markets were near the bottom, and poultry was in the middle.the skin market was close by.Lincoln's wealth in this period was based on wool; although most cloth was exported , a small amount was sold in the city. there was a cloth market nearby, in the parish st michael on the mont.

A 3rd-century traveller approaching the upper Roman city from the south couldnot fail to have been impressed.A monumental series of steps led straight up the steepest part of the hill. There was no other place in Roman Britain like it, though such stairways were known in cities in hilly parts of the Mediterranean. Wheeled vehicles had to take a detour along what are now Well Lane and Danesgate.

At the top of the steps was a magnificent gate, with a double carriageway and possibly also pedestrian arches to either side.The whole structure was about 12 metres (39 feet) wide.Some of the houses on Steep Hill contain sections of this gateway. Part of it still forms the outer wall between the shops on the west side, at the point where Steep Hill is narrowest. The gate was demolished in the 1700`s.

Boundary Stones.

In the 18th century, boundary stones were erected at the city gates, to indicate the point where the town coucils authority ended and that of the constable of the castle began. The constable controlled the entire Bail, the upper Roman city that became the first castle bailey. The boundary stones can still be found at Newport, Eastgate and Steep Hill. Only in 1835 did the city council gain authority over the Bail.

The names of 'The Strait' and 'Steep Hill' are 18th century inventions; for centuries before that, this roadway was called Micklegate.In Roman times, the line of the main north-south route through the city, Ermine Street, was slightyly to the west of Steep Hill. This hillside was terraced, with commercial outlets on the main road and domestic
housing in the side streets.It is much like that today.

Steep Hill owes its atmosphere to its gradient and to the quaint houses up and down its length. The street markets of the medieval period later gave way to shops on either side. these originally served the needs of local people, such as grocers, hardware stores, butchers, cobblers and newsagents.

In more recent times, the shops have changed in character to cater for the growing number of visitors to Lincoln.Steep Hill is now full of special interest teashops, craft outlets, galleries, gift shops and boutiques.

Because they are commercial premises, many of the buildings have modernised fronts, The nature of the architecture can therefore best be appreciated by looking at the upper storeys and roofs, or looking around inside. Some, such as nos.28 to 30 date back to the 1300's.

There are also surviving examples of 'studded', or timber-framed, houses, such as the 'Crooked House' in Michaelgate, and the Harlequin at the junction of Steep Hill and Michaelgate.

One of the oldest surviving domestic dwellings in England stands at the foot of Steep Hill, in The Striat. Jew`s House was built about 1150-60, probably with a commercial frontage and living quarters upstairs.

Adjoining it to the north is Jew`s Court, built several centuries later but on the site of a medieval building. It takes its name from the synagogue that is believed to have stood somewhere adjacent to the site.

Lincoln in the 11th and 12th centuries was a prosperous commercial centre, and in a time before banks, the Jews fulfilled an extremely important function as moneylenders. By law, Christians could not be money lenders. The result was that the wealth of the jews was resented. This was also the time of the crusades, when hostility to 'infidels' was strong. There were a number of attacks on the Jews, in which property was destroyed and lives were lost.

Anti-Semitic attacks were increasing all over the country at that time, and culminated in the expulsion of Jews from England in 1290. Thirty houses in Lincoln were siezed, one of which was the Jew`s House, owned by Belaset of Wallingford.

In 1992, the first meeting of Jews for the purpose of worship since 1290 was held in Jew`s Court;such meetings continue. The Society for Lincolnshire History and Archaeology now occupies the building.

Lincoln`s first theatre opened in nearby durury lane in 1744,william herbet's company of comedians.The harlequin became the theatre inn.The inn sign can still be seen on the wall of this half-timbered building, built in the 15th century, at the junction of steep hill and michaelgate.

The Norman House was built about 1170-90. Along with the Jews House (one of the earliest stone houses on steep hill).
The first known inhabitant of the Norman House was one Joceus of York; we know little about him.
Many early architectural features are preserved, including the Norman window and doorway.

St Michael`s was also the site of the Christ Hospital Bluecoat School, founded in the early 17th century. Its name derived from the long blue cassock that the boys wore. The school moved to new premises in the
late 1800`s. The buildings have now been taken over by the University of Lincoln.

In Wordsworth Street stands Chad Varah House. The county hospital opened here in 1777, which later became the Lincoln Theological College. The building is now part of the University of Lincoln School of Art and Design.

The most famous theology graduate was Chad Varah, a native of Lincolnshire. He studied here under Michael Ramsay, later Archbishop of Canterbury. When Varah was a parish priest in Lincoln, he was so moved by the suicide
of a young girl that he founded the samaritans.This has grown into a worldwide organisation to help the suicidal.