Grantham has three crosses to describe – Its market cross and two lost crosses: the Eleanor Cross and the Apple Cross. Grantham’s Eleanor Cross is described in the section on Eleanor crosses (here) and the Apple Cross is described in the next gazetteer entry.
| Parish/District | Grantham/South Kesteven |
| Location | Near the centre of Grantham market place |
| Category | Market cross |
| National Grid Ref | SK 91291 35941 |
| Designation | Scheduled / Listed II |
| Stone type | Limestone (+mixed petrology for modern additions) |
| Refs | A P Survey 10 Dec 1993; Davies, D. S., 1913, Lincs N & Q, Vol XII No.5 pp129-150 |
| Visits | AP: 10 Dec 1993 | DS/HH: 10 May 2006 |
Grantham was a borough by 1066 and already an important administrative and market centre by that date; it was incorporated as a town in 1463. The town had a formal market (mercatum) by 1281 and received a market charter in 1484, although it had been a thriving market centre for centuries before that. Stocker has speculated that there were three market place sites in Grantham which developed as the town grew and its main routeways changed. The earliest was on St Peter’s Hill, where the Newton statue stands, and there was also a market on the land to the west of St Wulfram’s church. (See Grantham Apple Cross). By the early 14th century Grantham had grown and realigned itself around the Great North Road and the present market place, west of the High Street, had developed. The market cross erected at that time is still in place although the structure itself has been altered (and even removed) several times during the intervening centuries.
In 1779, Lord of the Manor, John Manners, had the market cross removed but was made to replace it the following year. The form of the 18th century cross is unknown, but some images survive of the cross in the nineteenth century, including a painting of the ‘Opening of the mid-Lent Fair’ c.1820 (thought to be by Manuel Immanuel) and an engraving by Thomas Allom c.1838. (see below)
By 1884 the cross was deemed to be unsafe and was dismantled and removed – in its place, the Earl of Dysart installed a granite obelisk which remained in the market place until 1911 when the old cross was repaired and reinstated by public demand. Photographs of the restored structure show that it looks almost identical to the original, the only visible difference being the decorative banding on the shaft.
In 1966, the shaft and the head of the cross were replaced. The decorative banding on the shaft has gone and the shape of the cap-stone on the cross head has been altered.
The formal description of Grantham market cross states: The octagonal base has four large steps constructed of worn limestone slabs, each about 0.4m in height. They are believed to be medieval in date with later repairs represented by some renewed slabs and concrete infilling. On the top step rests the plinth, a large cone-shaped construction of octagonal section tapering upwards to a small, moulded socket stone. The shaft is composed of five stones of octagonal section which taper upwards to a roll-moulding. On the east face is an inscription recording its restoration in 1966. On top of the shaft is a moulded and chamfered knop of octagonal section below and round section above, capped by the head, which takes the form of an iron cross. The upper parts of the head may date from 18th- or 19th-century restorations, while the shaft, knop and metal cross are late 20th-century in date. The full height of the cross is nearly 9m.
