Lanercost Priory
Encyclopedia
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
was founded by Robert de Vaux between 1165 and 1174, the most likely date being 1169, to house Augustinian Canons
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
. It is situated at the village of Lanercost
Lanercost
Lanercost is a village in the northern part of Cumbria, England. The settlement is in the civil parish of Burtholme, in the City of Carlisle local government district. Lanercost is known for the presence of Lanercost Priory and its proximity to Hadrian's Wall.-History:Lanercost Priory was founded...
, Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, England
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...
, within sight of Naworth Castle
Naworth Castle
Naworth Castle, also known as, or recorded in historical documents as "Naward", is a castle in Cumbria, England near the town of Brampton. It is adjacent to the A69 about two miles east of Brampton. It is on the opposite side of the River Irthing to, and just within sight of, Lanercost Priory...
, with which it long had close connections.
It is now open to the public and in the guardianship of English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
.
Early years
The foundation date was traditionally 1169, but can only be dated definitely between 1165 and 1174 on the evidence of charters. The dedication is to St. Mary Magdalene; unusual in the region.It would seem the arrangements for founding the Priory were well advanced by the time of the foundation charter, as opposed to the more gradual process at Wetheral
Wetheral Priory Gatehouse
Wetheral Priory Gatehouse is almost all that remains of the Benedictine Wetheral Priory in Wetheral, Cumbria. Wetheral Priory, was founded in 1106 from its motherhouse of St. Mary's Abbey, York. The gatehouse is virtually the only standing remnant of the much grander Priory buildings, and was the...
and St. Bees
St Bees Priory
St Bees Priory is the parish church of St Bees, Cumbria. The Benedictine priory was founded by William le Meschin, Lord of Egremont on an earlier religious site, and was dedicated by Archbishop Thurstan of York sometime between 1120 and 1135...
. Robert de Vaux gave the land of Lanercost "between the ancient wall and the Irthing and between Burth and Poltros, the vill of Walton by stated bounds, the church of that vill with the chapel of 'Treverman,' the churches of Irthington, Brampton, Carlaton and Farlam". The charter of foundation states that the benefaction was made for the sake of Henry II, and for the health of the souls of his father Hubert and his mother Grace.
Soon after the foundation of the house, Robert de Vaux granted to the canons the right of free election, so that when the lord prior died the person on whom the choice of the canons or the greater part of them fell should be elected in his place.
The bulk of the church building dates from the late 13th century, though there is evidence of earlier work.
Visitors and raiders
The proximity to Scotland inevitably had an effect on the fortunes of the priory, and it was a target of Scots attacks in retaliation to English raids. This became acute after the outbreak of the War of Independence. In 1296 the Scottish army encamped at Lanercost after burning Hexham priory and Lambley nunnery. The Scots were interrupted before the damage could become great, and they retreated through Nicolforest, having burnt some houses of the monastery but not the church.Similar depredations under Wallace continued the next year and led to calls for reprisals from the English.
Edward I made several visits to the priory in the latter part of his reign. In the autumn of 1280 he visited in the company of Queen Eleanor
Eleanor of Castile
Eleanor of Castile was the first queen consort of Edward I of England. She was also Countess of Ponthieu in her own right from 1279 until her death in 1290, succeeding her mother and ruling together with her husband.-Birth:...
on his way to Newcastle. The canons met him at the gate in their copes, and although staying only a few days, he found time to take 200 stags and hinds while hunting in Inglewood forest. In 1300, on his way to the siege of Caerlaverock castle, Edward stayed at Lanercost for a short while.
Edward's last visit was in 1306, travelling in a horse litter owing to age and illness, and accompanied by Queen Margaret. He arrived at Michaelmas and his stay extended until the following Easter, a duration of 6 months which put a huge burden upon the resources of the priory. It was while Edward was at Lanercost that the brothers of Robert de Brus and other Scottish captives were sent to Carlisle for execution by his order.
This last royal visit depleted the reserves of the priory, and the canons begged him for recompense, but a deal to acquire the church of 'Hautwyselle,' worth about 100 marks a year, fell through. However the king granted the appropriation of the churches of Mitford in Northumberland and Carlatton in Cumberland, for the relief of the Priory. In a letter to the Pope, Edward gave his reasons for generosity being the special devotion he felt to St. Mary Magdalene, his long stay due to illness, and making good the damage of the Scots. Edward died shortly afterwards at Burgh by Sands in July 1307, whilst still campaigning against the Scots.
In August, 1311, Robert Bruce
Robert I of Scotland
Robert I , popularly known as Robert the Bruce , was King of Scots from March 25, 1306, until his death in 1329.His paternal ancestors were of Scoto-Norman heritage , and...
, King of Scotland, came with his army and made it his headquarters for three days, "committing infinite evils" and imprisoning some canons; though later letting them free. By contrast in 1328, in fulfilment of the treaty between the Bruce and Edward III, a mutual interchange of good offices took place between the priory of Lanercost and Kelso Abbey
Kelso Abbey
Kelso Abbey is what remains of a Scottish abbey founded in the 12th century by a community of Tironensian monks first brought to Scotland in the reign of Alexander I. It occupies ground overlooking the confluence of the Tweed and Teviot waters, the site of what was once the Royal Burgh of Roxburgh...
in respect of their common revenues out of the church of Lazonby.
Later though, in 1346 David II ransacked the conventual buildings and desecrated the church. Fresh from the overthrow of Liddel he "entered the holy place with haughtiness, threw out the vessels of the temple, stole the treasures, broke the doors, took the jewels, and destroyed everything they could lay hands on". As late as 1386 one of the priors was taken prisoner by the Scots and ransomed for a fixed sum of money and four score quarters of corn.
The fortunes of the priory were linked to the state of warfare and raids on the border. The priory was in relatively affluent circumstances before the outbreak of the war of Independence in 1296, and the annual revenue of the house was returned at £74 12s 6d in the 1291 valuation of Pope Nicholas IV. But by the taxation of 1318 the value had fallen almost to nothing.
The Parish Church
Lanercost Priory was dissolved in 1538 by Henry VIIIHenry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
, and the conventual buildings were stripped of their roofs, excepting the church building which continued in use as the parish church. In the late 17th century, as the Nave deteriorated, the congregation used just the north aisle which had been re-roofed.
In 1747 the nave was re-roofed, but by 1847 the Priory was in a state of disrepair to the extent that the east end roof collapsed. However, by 1849 The church was in use again after a major restoration by Anthony Salvin
Anthony Salvin
Anthony Salvin was an English architect. He gained a reputation as an expert on medieval buildings and applied this expertise to his new buildings and his restorations...
. In the 1870s there was further restoration by the Carlisle architect C J Ferguson.
At the Dissolution, ownership had passed to the Dacre family, and then in the early 18th century to the Howards. In 1929 The Priory ruins were put into public ownership, and today they are managed by English Heritage.
Architectural notes
The naveNave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
has an aisle
Aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of seats on both sides or with rows of seats on one side and a wall on the other...
to the north, but a large wall to the south with no aisle, where it abuts the cloister
Cloister
A cloister is a rectangular open space surrounded by covered walks or open galleries, with open arcades on the inner side, running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth...
. The impressive ruined chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
and crossing of ca. 1220-1230 are in a good state of preservation; as high as the eaves, and would only require a roof and windows to be restored to the original condition. The oldest masonry is in the south transept, and dates from the late 12th century. The cloister and monastic buildings have been largely dismantled; except for the west range, which was made into a house by Sir Thomas Dacre
Thomas Dacre, 4th Baron Dacre
Thomas Dacre, 4th Baron Dacre of Gilsland, also Baron Greystock and de jure Baron Boteler was an English Member of Parliament and after his father's death a peer and major landowner in the counties of Cumberland, Yorkshire and Northumberland.-Early life:Born about 1527, Dacre was the eldest of...
in the 16th century.
The statue of St Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
, given by King Edward I
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
, still survives in a niche high up on the west front.
Memorials
The priory has an unusual medieval stone carving called the Lanercost Cross with an inscription dating back to 1214. Originally the cross was set justoutside the entrance to the church. Today the stump of the cross remains, but the main shaft is housed inside the priory.
In the churchyard is the tomb of Thomas Addison
Thomas Addison
Thomas Addison was a renowned 19th-century English physician and scientist. He is traditionally regarded as one of the "great men" of Guy's Hospital in London....
, scientist and physician. In the nave is a memorial to the Reverend Henry Whitehead
Reverend Henry Whitehead
The Reverend Henry Whitehead was a Church of England cleric and the assistant curate at St. Luke's church in Soho, London during the 1854 cholera outbreak....
, former vicar of Lanercost, best known for his pioneering epidemiological work with John Snow
John Snow
John Snow or Jon Snow may refer to:* Jon Snow, British newscaster* John Snow , founder of epidemiology and a major contributor to the development of anaesthesia* John W. Snow, 73rd United States Secretary of the Treasury...
on cholera.
Humphrey Dacre, 1st Baron Dacre
Humphrey Dacre, 1st Baron Dacre
Humphrey Dacre, 1st Baron Dacre of Gilsland , was an English soldier, Cumberland landowner and peer.He remained loyal to the House of Lancaster when Henry VI was deposed by Edward IV and fought on the Lancastrian side at the Battle of Towton of 1461, after which he was attainted...
, and his widow Mabel were both buried at the Priory in the 15th century.