Grosvenor Park and its surroundings

Grosvenor Park ~ The Groves ~ St John's and St John's Ruins

Grosvenor Park

Get directions to Grosvenor Park.

Grosvenor Park sits just outside Chester’s city walls, close to the Roman Amphitheatre and the River Dee. The park, which is listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens, provides an air of tranquility amongst the hustle and bustle of the city centre.

Entrance to Grosvenor Park

Grosvenor Park is a classical, 19^th century designed park with a typical Victorian layout that includes formal avenues lined with trees, large sweeping lawns surrounded with ornamental shrub beds and bedding plants, which provide a colourful display throughout the spring and summer months. The park is located near the River Dee and with views across the river to the meadows and Queen’s Park and out towards the south of Chester. You can enter the park from a number of different locations. The original main entrance and the other city centre entrances are located on the north side of the park, off the busy Grosvenor Park Road. The other entrances on the south and western boundaries are next to The Groves and St. John’s.

Grosvenor Park was one of the first public parks in Britain outside of the big industrial cities and was given to the city of Chester in 1867 by Richard Grosvenor, the Second Marquess of Westminster.  Find out more about the history of Grosvenor Park.

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The Groves

The Groves is one of Chester’s premier open spaces, running along the city bank of the River Dee. It became a promenade in the early 1700s and is now part of a longer Riverside Promenade.

In 1726, the area was leased to Charles Croughton who secured the river bank and planted an avenue of trees. By the late 18^th century it had become known as The Groves. The City Walls also became a fashionable place and during the 18^th century, the circuit was modified and the Groves and the walls were connected through the construction of Recorder’s Steps. In Roman times, this section of riverside was a series of quarries where stone was extracted for building the fortress. In Saxon times, The Groves was probably the main port area and may have had a concentration of leatherworking. Of note, nearby is Souter’s Lane and Souter is the Middle English term for shoemaker. There were also lanes leading to the Saxon Minster of St John’s. This would have included a lane, which Edgar would have used to reach the church after being rowed up the river by the British princes in 973. In medieval times, the port was located downstream with quays below the castle and near to the Watergate. However, the area that is now The Groves may have remained the site of landings for river craft. The Normans had constructed a weir soon after their arrival in Chester which was used to power water mills on both banks of the Dee for centuries. However, the weir also created a barrier for river craft travelling downstream and for seagoing vessels navigating upstream.

The Groves

During the 19^th century, The Groves established itself as Chester’s resort with boat trips available to see the riverside upstream including the Grosvenor’s Eaton Estate. Band concerts were also an attraction. In 1913 a bandstand was built together with kiosks for traders – all of which remain today. In the 1920s the seating terraces were laid out and public toilets built. The latter, however, cut off access to Jacob’s Well (the small arch of which is now in Grosvenor Park). They are situated next to the lane that was probably used by Edgar and his entourage to reach St John’s.

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St John’s and St John’s Ruins

The Church of St John the Baptist is one of the oldest buildings in Chester. It was founded as a Saxon Minster, probably in the 7^th Century. The church may occupy an earlier Christian site which was associated with Christian martyrdom in the Roman amphitheatre. It is likely that much of the early church was built using stone taken from the amphitheatre. In 973 it is thought that King Edgar worshipped here after being rowed up the River Dee by other British princes in recognition of him being their overlord.

St John's and St John's Ruins

The church was rebuilt by the Normans and for a short time it became a cathedral (1075 to 1102) and remained an important religious site throughout the Middle Ages. From the 13^th century its reputation was enhanced by the possession of an important religious relic – the Rood (or cross) of Chester. This attracted pilgrims and, significantly, income. St John’s was a collegiate church – that is a church administered by a college of Canons headed by a Dean. The medieval church suffered from neglect after the dissolution of the collegiate authorities in the 1540s. It also suffered damage during the Civil War. It was captured by the Parliamentarians who used the church as barracks and churchyard as a gun battery during the siege of Chester. From here the Roundhead guns bombarded, and even breached, the city walls. The exterior is now largely Victorian, including restoration work by John Douglas, but the interior is Norman and medieval. Some of its pillars have remnants of medieval paintings. St John’s is on the Millennium Festival Trail

St John’s was at one time almost twice its present size but was reduced to meet the needs of a parish church in the 16^th century. The present church is therefore flanked by ruins.  This includes the remains of the former tall west tower which collapsed in 1881 and the stone used to embank part of The Groves. The more extensive ruins at the eastern end were excavated in the 1870s around the time when the churchyard was closed for burials. These ruins have since become a Scheduled Ancient Monument. In the 1950s they passed into the guardianship of Chester City Council.

A 15^th century coffin is set high into the wall of one of the ruins. This is made out of a single piece of wood and on it are inscribed the words ‘Dust to Dust’. It was put here in the 19^th century and is thought to have come from the Nantwich area. Local folklore, however, gives it much more colourful origins. One tale is that it is the coffin of a monk who had committed murder. Another is that is it the coffin of someone who wanted to be prepared for the day of judgement and so had asked to be buried standing up – ready for the last trumpet to sound. Yet another is that it is the coffin of a sinner who the Devil placed here to forever look down on the living world as punishment.

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