Blanchland Abbey at Blanchland

Blanchland

Blanchland is a model village in Northumberland, England, right on the County Durham boundary with picturesque houses, set against a backdrop of deep woods and open moors....

, in the English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 county

County

A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...

 of Northumberland

Northumberland

Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...

, was founded as a premonstratensian

Premonstratensian

The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré, also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines, or in Britain and Ireland as the White Canons , are a Catholic religious order of canons regular founded at Prémontré near Laon in 1120 by Saint Norbert, who later became Archbishop of Magdeburg...

 priory in 1165 by Walter de Bolbec II, and was a daughter house of Croxton abbey in Leicestershire. It became an abbey in the late 13th century. The 16th century former Abbot's house (now the Lord Crewe Arms) is a Grade II* listed building and the whole site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument

Scheduled Ancient Monument

In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a 'nationally important' archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorized change. The various pieces of legislation used for legally protecting heritage assets from damage and destruction are grouped under the term...

.

The Anglo-Scottish wars

The abbey granges were pillaged during the anglo-scots wars, in particular during 1327, but the abbey itself was apparently left unscathed. There is however a legend that during one raid in the area, the monks prayed that the abbey would be spared. Subsequently, a mist descended which shielded the valley and monastery from view and was overlooked by the Scottish raiders, who passed by. The foolish monks upon hearing this, proceeded to ring the abbey bells to signal to every one in the valley that it was safe, that the invaders had passed. During their celebration of bell ringing, the Scottish invaders heard the bells, turned around and ransacked the Monastery.

The dissolution and beyond

The abbey was dissolved in 1539 and granted to the Bellow and Broxholm families. It was later acquired by the Radclyffe family from whom it passed by marriage to Nicholas Forster. Part of the abbey church was altered and retained for use as a parish church and the abbots former residence became the manor house. In 1612, it was the residence of Sir Claudius Forster

Sir Claudius Forster, 1st Baronet

Sir Claudius Forster, 1st Baronet was a member of an ancient and influential Northumbrian family. He was descended from a long line of Governors of Bamburgh Castle, and was granted ownership of Bamburgh Castle and estates by the Crown in 1609.He was knighted by James I in 1603 and created a...

, High Sheriff of Northumberland

High Sheriff of Northumberland

This is a list of the High Sheriffs of the English county of Northumberland.The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post...

.

When in 1701 Fernando Forster was murdered, the estate passed through to co-heirs; Dorothy (sister of Fernando) who had married Lord Crewe, Bishop of Durham

Nathaniel Crew, 3rd Baron Crew

Nathanial Crew, 3rd Baron Crew was Bishop of Oxford from 1671 to 1674, then Bishop of Durham from 1674 to 1721. As such he was one of the longest serving bishops of the Church of England....

 and Thomas Forster

Thomas Forster

Thomas Forster was a Northumbrian politician and landowner, who served as general of the Jacobite army in the 1715 Uprising.-Life:...

 of Adderstone, the son of her deceased sister Frances. The estate was however encumbered with debt. Lord Crewe purchased all the Forster estates including Blanchland in 1704 for £20697 sufficient to pay off the creditors. The Forster connection with Blanchland came to an end as a result of Thomas Forster's

Thomas Forster

Thomas Forster was a Northumbrian politician and landowner, who served as general of the Jacobite army in the 1715 Uprising.-Life:...

 involvement in the Jacobite rebellion

Jacobite rising

The Jacobite Risings were a series of uprisings, rebellions, and wars in Great Britain and Ireland occurring between 1688 and 1746. The uprisings were aimed at returning James VII of Scotland and II of England, and later his descendants of the House of Stuart, to the throne after he was deposed by...

of 1715. On his death in 1721, Lord Crewe left all his properties to be administered in in trust for charitable purposes (Lord Crewe's Charity)

The abbey gatehouse survives and the stone houses surrounding the village square were partly constructed using stone from the monastery. The manor house became an inn, the Lord Crewe Arms, in the 1720s.