Slipper Chapel
A small medieval chapel carries the Catholic return to Walsingham. It stands within the present National Shrine at Houghton St Giles.
- Location
- Walsingham, England
- 52.8811° N · 0.8533° E
- Type
- Church
- Mid-fourteenth-century Decorated Gothic flint and stone, with twentieth-century restoration by Thomas Garner
- Dedication
- Saint Catherine of Alexandria
The last chapel before Walsingham
The Slipper Chapel asks for a pause before the final approach. Its intimate scale, flint walls, Marian image and east window hold medieval pilgrimage and modern Catholic restoration in one room. Saint Catherine of Alexandria is its historic patron. The larger shrine precinct surrounds it, but this chapel still gives the pilgrimage its threshold.
A medieval wayside chapel, returned to prayer
Built in the mid-fourteenth century, the chapel stood on the southern approach to medieval Walsingham. It survived the 1538 suppression in secular use. Charlotte Pearson Boyd purchased it in 1896, and Thomas Garner restored it for Catholic use. Public Catholic pilgrimage returned from King’s Lynn in 1897; in 1934 this chapel became the National Shrine for Roman Catholics in England. Pilgrims are traditionally said to have removed their shoes before the final mile. The name may also derive from “slype,” a passageway; its exact origin is unsettled.
Look for the flint walls and stone dressings, Decorated Gothic tracery and small wayside-chapel scale. Garner’s restoration is part of what the visitor sees. Inside, attend to the image of Our Lady, the altar and reredos, and Geoffrey Webb’s east window with its Assumption imagery.
Notice the scale of the threshold
A small building carries a long history.
- 01 Medieval fabric and restoration Flint and stone belong to the medieval chapel; Thomas Garner’s work made renewed Catholic worship possible.
- 02 The east window Geoffrey Webb’s Assumption imagery draws the eye upward while the altar keeps the room close.
- 03 The way ahead The original Holy House did not stand here. The chapel was a threshold on the approach to Little Walsingham.
Spiritual Significance
Pray with Mary’s fiat and the Incarnation. The building’s dedication to Saint Catherine and its place in the Marian pilgrimage are complementary, not competing, devotions.
Do Not Miss
-
01
The flint and tracery
Walk around the small exterior before entering.
-
02
East window and altar
Read the Assumption imagery without hurrying.
-
03
The onward route
The Holy Mile and Pilgrim Way lead north by different paths.
How to Visit
The chapel is within the Catholic National Shrine precinct at Houghton St Giles. Confirm current access and worship with the shrine; continue toward Little Walsingham by the Holy Mile or the separate Pilgrim Way.
Check chapel access with the shrine
The Slipper Chapel belongs to the active Catholic National Shrine. Worship and access can change.
- Location
- Houghton St Giles, in the Catholic National Shrine precinct
- Access
- Check current shrine guidance before travel
Before arrival
Use the shrine’s current visitor guidance and program.
- The chapel is a place of prayer within an active pilgrimage precinct.
Connected Saints
-
Saint Catherine of Alexandria Historic dedication The medieval chapel is dedicated to Saint Catherine of Alexandria.
Continue Your Pilgrimage
-
City hub
Walsingham
Where this church sits within the wider Catholic geography of Walsingham.
-
Sacred place
Catholic National Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham
The living shrine precinct that contains the chapel.
-
Sacred place
Holy Mile & Pilgrim Way
The distinct approaches north from the chapel.
-
Sacred place
Walsingham Priory Ruins & Site of the Holy House
The medieval destination of the final approach.
Map
Official church sources.
September 25, 2026
Photo credits
- Hero. The Slipper Chapel, Walsingham - geograph.org.uk - 8015873. Photo: Helen Steed, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Source. CC BY-SA 2.0.