Leper Chapel, Cambridge

The chapel was part of the buildings of a leper hospital that stood a little beyond the outskirts of the city on the road to Bury St Edmunds.

In 1199 the chapel was given royal dispensation by King John to hold a three-day fair in order to raise money to support the lepers.

Starting in 1211, the fair took place around the Feast of the Holy Cross (14 September) on Stourbridge Common which lies a little way behind the chapel and continues down to the River Cam.

The fair was abolished in 1933, though it was later revived in the 21st century and is now held annually at the Leper Chapel.

The chapel is a Grade I listed building[1] and is maintained by Cambridge Past, Present and Future (CPPF).