The name given to that part of a Christian church which contans the altar at one (usually the
eastern) end.
It is usual for the chancel to be separated from the remainder of the church, usually the
nave (usually at the western end of the chancel),
by an arch or sometimes railings.
Frequently, many parish churches originated as a chapel which later became the chancel of
a larger church as at
Ryme Intrinseca in north-western Dorset. In other cases, as at
Oborne near Sherborne in
north-western Dorset, the chancel is all that remains of a former church.
Until the Reformation, the chancel belonged to the priest and the nave to the
congregation and the two areas were separated by a screen. The nave served as
the village hall and all manner of business was conducted in it including trade and legal matters. In
the 15th century when the economy of the country prospered because of the wool trade, many a
nave was used for storing wool.
With many villages finding it increasingly difficult to maintain both a parish church and a village
hall, there is mooted talk of possibly having to revert to these old ways in the future.
THE PURITANS
The purpose of the chancel is to hold the altar which the Puritans considered to be pagan and Popish and
they held that it should be replaced by a table within the body of the church. Thus it was that when the
parish church of St Mary in Marlborough
was restored during the Commonwealth, after the
Great Fire of 1653, the medieval chancel there was pulled down.
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