ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the extent and level of the contribution that existing churches made, both to the early phases of urban growth, and to the continuing development of the physical structure of two neighbouring towns–Gloucester and Worcester. It shows that Worcester and Gloucester shared fundamental characteristics during the post-Roman centuries. The contrast between Worcester and Gloucester is clear and lends some support to the perception of the much more active participation of the Church of Worcester in the several aspects of the development of its city. In both towns the Church's dominating physical presence was inescapable. Within the medieval walls of Worcester ecclesiastical precincts took up rather more than a quarter of the available area; in Gloucester it was a third. The role of the Church as a town-planner in the study towns was essentially determined by patterns of lordship established centuries before the foundation of the burhs.
