Greyfriars Spire – The Surviving Tower of Coventry’s Lost Friary

Amid Coventry’s modern skyline, the slender spire rising beside the glass curves of The Wave leisure centre may surprise passers-by. This is Greyfriars Spire, the last remaining remnant of a once-grand medieval Franciscan friary that shaped Coventry’s spiritual landscape centuries ago.

(For the benefit of beginners - The Franciscans are members of a Roman Catholic religious order founded by St. Francis of Assisi in the early 13th century (around 1209). A friary is a residence or community space for friars (male members of certain religious orders, like Franciscans or Dominicans). It differs from a monastery.

A Franciscan friary is a type of Christian religious house or monastery where Franciscan friars live and worship.

"Greyfriars" refers to a Franciscan friary belonging to the Franciscan Order and the term comes from the grey-colored habits (robes) that Franciscan monks traditionally wore.)

Greyfriars Spire - Coventry

The original Greyfriars Church was established in 1359, constructed using stone from a quarry reportedly owned by the Black Prince. The church stood at the heart of a thriving friary complex, part of a wider network of monastic institutions that once defined the city.

(The Black Prince refers to Edward of Woodstock (1330–1376), the eldest son of King Edward III of England and father of King Richard II. The nickname “Black Prince” was not used during his lifetime. It first appeared about 150 years later.)

Greyfriars Spire - Coventry

The dissolution of the monasteries under Henry VIII in 1542 led to the friary’s destruction. Yet the spire, elegant and resilient, was left standing in a garden for nearly three centuries. In 1829, a new church, Christ Church, was constructed around this medieval relic, breathing new life into the surviving tower.

Tragically, Christ Church was destroyed during the devastating air raids of the Coventry Blitz in November 1940. Once again, the tower and spire endured. In 1950, Coventry Corporation acquired the site and undertook restoration in 1953, ensuring that the tower would remain an enduring landmark.

Today, the spire has found a new purpose. Its base now houses Dhillon’s Spire Bar, blending the old and the new, a modern bar within the frame of centuries-old Gothic stonework. The pointed archways, tall lancet windows, and red sandstone exterior still speak of its ecclesiastical past, even as it welcomes a different kind of congregation.

From its origins as part of a 14th-century friary, through destruction, rebirth, and reinvention, the Greyfriars Spire tells a story of resilience and continuity, much like Coventry itself.

Happy travelling.