Winchester No. 12 / Venta Belgarum / Wintanceaster / Yenta Belgaruan

The entry for Winchester in the Victoria County History (Hampshire, 1912, vol. 5) notes: "Sixteen churches and two chapels in Winchester, excepting the Cathedral Church and the church of the Holy Cross, were taxed as of more than the yearly value of 6 marks in the Taxation of Pope Nicholas. [...] They were St. Anastasius, 'the church of Buckstreet,' St. Faith, St. James, St. Catherine, [...] St. Mary of the Valleys with the chapel of Wyke, St. Maurice, St. Rumbold, St. Stephen by Wolvesey, all under the patronage of the bishop; St. Bartholomew, Hyde, St. George, St. Lawrence, St. Michael in Jewry, St. Peter Whitebread (patrons the Abbot and convent of Hyde); St. John on the Hill, St. Peter Cheesehill (patrons the Prior and convent of St. Denys); and the chapel of St. Gertrude (non-parochial). [...] Besides these there were, as Bishop Pontoise's register shows: St. Alphege (patron the bishop); St. Andrew; St. John 'de Hospitali'; St. Boniface's Chapel (fn. 4); St. Clement's; St. Margaret's (patron the bishop); St. Mary Kalender; St. Mary, Tanner Street; St. Mary 'de Wode'; St. Mary, near Gold Street; St. Mary de Linca Selda; St. Martin's, Parchment Street (patrons the Abbess and convent of Wherwell); St. Martin's, Alward Street (patrons the Prior and convent of St. Denys, Southampton); St. Martin's, Gar Street; St. Martin's, Wood Street; St. Martin's without Westgate (patron the bishop); St. Michael without Kingsgate; St. Michael, Alward Street; St. Nicholas 'extra muros'; St. Nicholas, Kingsgate; St. Pancras [...]; St. Paul; St. Peter Colebrook (patrons the Abbess and convent of St. Mary, Winchester); St. Peter without Southgate (patron the bishop); St. Peter de Macellis (patron the bishop); St. Petrock [...]; St. Saviour, Burdon Street; St. Swithun Kingsgate (patron the Archdeacon of Surrey); St. Swithun, Fleshmonger Street; All Saints 'in Vineis'; All Saints, Gold Street; and St. Valentine [...] Between 1400 and 1450 no less than seventeen churches fell into decay and disuse. These were the churches of St. Saviour and Our Lady in Burdon Street, St. Michael in Jewry, St. Michael and St. Swithun in Fleshmonger Street, St. Martin in Parchment Street, St. Swithun in Shulworth Street, St. John Port Latin in Buckstreet, St. Martin in Minster Street, [...] St. Alphege and St. Petrock in Calpe Street, [...] St. Nicholas and St. Boniface in Gold Street, St. Margaret, St. Andrew and St. Paul in Gar Street, and St. John de Edera in Tanner Street. [...] Outside the city the church of St. Anastasius, together with that of St. Mary of the Valleys with Wyke chapel, which in the earlier half of the 15th century had been united to the parish church of St. Anastasius, were pulled down in 1493 and the chapel of Wyke was converted into a rectory. [...] By the reign of Henry VIII the number of churches in Winchester was reduced to about thirty, and of these many were in ruins. Bishop Fox between 1502 and 1528 suppressed several of the remaining churches, 'uniting them to others to make an honest living unto the incumbent,' and reducing the number to about fifteen." [NB: we have no information on the fonts of the disappeared churches here].