King Henry VIII of England

St John Street Until 1840 and the creation of Priory Road, the main entry to Wells from Glastonbury was via Southover and St John Street, named after the Priory of the Hospital of St John the Baptist, founded c1220 by Bishop Jocelyn and his brother Bishop Hugh of Lincoln. The Priory was a religious community dedicated to worship, nursing the sick, and helping the poor and the disabled. It comprised the Prior and ten Brothers. The Priory was dissolved by Henry VIII in 1539, but the main Priory buildings survived until 1859, being then demolished and replaced by the Central School, whose buildings still exist but are now converted into dwellings. The adjacent house, called The Priory, was probably the Prior's lodging, and contains significant mediaeval remains.

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