NHER 64056 (Monument record) - Site of East Gate

Previously recorded under NHER 5486.

The East Gate was also known as St Catherine's Gate. Although assigned to the time of Edward III (1327-1377) it is also mentioned in the time of Henry II (1154-1189) and was demolished in 1800. It was preceded by a wooden tower known as East Bretaske which stood at or near the East Gate and which was pre-1370, perhaps 13th century. The Gate was rebuilt in 1542. The Woodward Correspondence noted a coat of arms of Henry VIII from this gate in a builder's yard. This was reset on the magistrates' courts in College Lane.
According to (S1) the east gate had long acted as a defensive barrier and tollgate, but by the end of the 18th century it was in a poor state of repair and the lowness of the arch was proving problematic. In May 1792 the decision was made to take down the arch on the east side of the Gate and in July 1800 it was ordered that the whole Gate be removed, together with the adjoining houses on the south and west sides.
The side walls were retained as parapets until around 1900 when they were taken for use as boundary walls at Mill House, Tennyson Avenue (NHER 64030).
According to (S4) a drawbridge was ordered to be built between 1642 and 1646, along with one for the South Gate.
See (S1) for further detail. See also (S2), (S3) and (S4).
E. Rose (NAU), amended A. Cattermole (King's Lynn UAD), 6 March 2020.