Bradenstoke Priory

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Bradenstoke Priory, engraving by Samuel and Nathaniel Buck, late 18th century

Bradenstoke Priory was a priory of Augustinian canons in Bradenstoke , Wiltshire , England. In the 1930s it was acquired by William Randolph Hearst who removed part of the substance for the renovation of St Donat's Castle at Llantwit Major , Wales.

Foundation and four centuries of existence

The priory was founded as an Augustinian priory in 1142 and dedicated to the Virgin Mary . It was on a high ridge near a sacred well, with other springs nearby; Evidence suggests the existence of a chapel at this fountain as early as the time of Henry I of England . The founder, Walter FitzEdward de Salisbury, the son of Edward of Salisburys , High Sheriff of Wiltshire gave land for a priory to be the daughter of St. Mary's Abbey, Cirencester . After the death of his wife, he entered the monastery himself, where he died in 1147 and was buried next to the choir. His descendants, the Earl of Salisbury , remained closely associated with the priory for many years. In 1190 thirteen of the canons moved to Cartmel Priory , Lancashire , which had recently been founded by William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke .

During most of its early history, the priory also enjoyed royal support and received a charter from Henry II of England between 1173 and 1179 ; Richard I of England also lent the priory his assistance to break away from the Abbot of Cirencester and become a priory in its own right, and King John of England , a frequent visitor, intervened to confirm this secession. This tradition continued with the granting of royal protection by Henry III. away from England , who visited the priory in 1235.

The tower
Bradenstoke Priory and its domain

By the 14th century Bradenstoke Priory had grown rich and owned land in nine other counties besides Wiltshire. In his final years, Bradenstoke Priory benefited from the fact that his prior, Thomas Wallashe, lived in the household of Cardinal Bainbridge , Archbishop of York , and received extensive privileges from the Pope during his time as ambassador to Rome (1509–1514).

The resolution

At first it seemed that Bradenstoke Priory could escape the dissolution of the English monasteries , and the last prior, William Snowe, wrote to Thomas Cromwell to thank him for saving the monastery. However, the priory was suppressed as a Catholic institution and abandoned on January 17, 1539 by Snowe and thirteen Canon Regulars. At that time his total income was about £ 270 10s 8d, at least £ 212 in 1535. The property went to the Crown, then to Richard Pexel (or Pescall), whose heirs sold it to the Methuen family in Corsham .

Prior Snowe received a pension from the Crown on April 24, 1539 and was later appointed Dean of Bristol (1542–1551).

John Aubrey described the priory as "very well built, with good strong ribs," and a cellar that was "the grandest in Wiltshire". But he added, “That the foundations of this beautiful church are now excavated, 1666, where I saw several free-standing coffins ... and several capitals and bases of beautiful Gothic columns. At the western end of the hall were the king's quarters, which are said to be very noble and date from around 1588. "

The ground floor

Recent history

In 1925, William Randolph Hearst saw an advertisement for the sale of St. Donat's Castle in Country Life magazine and directed his agent in England to buy the castle. He also bought the guest house, the prior's house and the large tithe barn of Bradenstoke Priory and had them demolished: some of the material was turned into a banquet hall, including a 16th century French fireplace and windows; a 1514 fire pit was also added and a 14th century roof of Bradenstoke Hall, although these measures led to a request in Parliament. The destruction of the priory sparked opposition from the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, including a poster campaign on the London Underground. The tithe barn was boxed and sent to Hearst Castle , San Simeon , California, and then resold when Hearst lost interest. The barn roof timber crates are stored in an Alex Madonna Construction warehouse in San Luis Obispo , California.

All that remains of the priory in the 21st century is its tower and basement, the latter being classified by English Heritage in its 1996–1997 program as endangered and requiring emergency repairs. In 2005 it was announced that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs would fund a program to preserve the orchard and the landscape around the remains. The priory is not open to the public.

literature

  • John Aubrey, The Natural History of Wiltshire , 2008, ISBN 978-1-4346-6761-8
  • William Lisle Bowles, John Gough Nicols, Annals and Antiquities of Lacock Abbey , London 1835, p. 20 ( online, accessed October 9, 2019 )
  • John Harris, Moving Rooms, Yale University Press, 2007, ISBN 978-0-300-12420-0
  • Martin Heale, The Abbots and Priors of Late Medieval and Reformation England , Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016
  • David Knowles, R. Neville Hadcock, Medieval Religious Houses, England and Wales , Longmans Green, London, 1953
  • Vera CM London, The Cartulary of Bradenstoke Priory . 35.Devizes: Wiltshire Record Society, 1979
  • RB Pugh, Elizabeth Crittall, Houses of Augustinian canons: Priory of Bradenstoke , in: A History of the County of Wiltshire , Volume 3, London, 1956, pp. 275-288. ( British History Online, accessed October 9, 2019 ).
  • David M. Smith, The Heads of Religious Houses: England an Wales, III. 1377-1540 , Cambridge University Press, 2008

Web links

Remarks

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h Pugh / Crittall
  2. ^ Bowles and Nicols
  3. ^ Cawley
  4. ^ Bowles / Nichols
  5. ↑ London
  6. ^ Heale, p. 223
  7. ^ Heale, p. 313
  8. ↑ Bowles / Nicols, p. 31
  9. ↑ Knowles / Hadcock, p. 129
  10. ↑ Bowles / Nicols, p. 32
  11. ^ Smith, p. 386
  12. ↑ Heale, pp. 313, 378
  13. ↑ “the very foundations of this fair church are now, 1666, digged up, where I saw several freestone coffins ... and several capitalls and bases of handsome Gothique pillars. On the west end of the hall was the King's lodgeings, which they say were very noble, and standing about 1588. " (Aubrey)
  14. ↑ a b Harris, pp. 84-86
  15. ↑ Archeology Review 1996–97: 4.19 Publications ( online, accessed October 9, 2019 )
  16. ↑ Historic Site to be restored ( online, accessed October 9, 2019 )

Coordinates: 51 ° 30 ′ 44 ″  N , 2 ° 0 ′ 13 ″  W.