Well Cross, Gloucester, Gloucestershire
This Well Head (cistern) was built to supply water to the Benedictine Abbey of St Peter in Gloucester. It is possibly one mentioned in records of 1163-84. The right to pipe water from the springs on the hill to the abbey was confirmed by William Geruad of Matson who, at the same time, granted a similar right to the Grey Friars in c1230. In 1355 a dispute between the abbey and the friary about interference in the supply of water was resolved by Edward, the Black Prince, at the behest of King Edward I. He allowed the friars take one third of the supply of water from the hill. In 1483 the friars granted three quarters of their supply of water to the bailiffs and community of Gloucester. With the nearby Well House this is of outstanding significance in a national context, for its rarity and importance as part of a medieval water supply system.
