Leeds Priory
Encyclopedia
Leeds Priory, also known as Leeds Abbey was a priory
in Leeds
, Kent
, England
that was founded in 1119 and dissolved in 1539. A mansion was later built on the site of the priory, it was demolished in the late C18th.
style. Materials used in the construction were Kentish Ragstone, with Caen stone
corners. It had a vaulted porch, similar to that to be seen today at Snettisham
church, Norfolk
. In the 1320s, the nave
was rebuilt, and the north transept
was enlarged in the Decorated style. The south transept may have been rebuilt at this time. At a later date, probably in the late 1380s or early 1390s, the presbytery
was replaced. This was a reversal of the normal process, where the presbytery was rebuilt before the nave and transepts. A probable cause was the sharply rising ground immediately east of the church presenting a barrier to extension. The chapter house
adjoined the south transept, it was built c1160.
The main church formed the northern part of the priory, with ranges to the east, west, and south. The warming house
was probably in the south range. The kitchen was adjoining the south range.
. In 1177, Robert de Crevequer's son, also named Robert, bequeathed a fulling mill on the River Len to the priory in his will. The mill remained in the ownership of the priory until its dissolution. As well as Brandescombe Mill, the priory also possessed Abbey Mill at its dissolution.
In 1198, Pope Innocent III
confirmed the priory as falling under the See
of Canterbury
. In 1368, the donations of the de Crevequers were confirmed by King Edward III
, who also confirmed his patronage of the priory. In 1384, the priory was valued at £220. 12s. 8d.
About this time, during the reign of King Richard II
, canon Thomas Hazlewood came to Leeds Priory. He wrote several history books here, including A Compendious Chronicle. In 1452, King Richard III
confirmed the liberties of the priory.
By 1487, the priory was deeply in debt. James Goldwell
, Bishop of Norwich
, made generous donations to the priory, and gave sufficient support for an additional priest. Leeds Priory was dissolved
in 1539, then being valued at £362. 7s. 7d. The last prior, Thomas Day, received a pension
of £80 per annum from the King
.
After the priory had been dissolved, the King leased it to Anthony St Leger
for 21 years, at a rent of £22. 17s. 2d. per annum. The lease included both mills and 323 acres (130.7 ha) of land, and all houses etc associated with the priory. The priory itself was demolished and the materials carried away. In 1551, King Edward VI
granted the site of the priory and land and woods in Broomfield, Langley
, Leeds and Sutton Valence
amounting to 229 acres (92.7 ha) to St Leger to be held in capite
. The remainder of the estate had been assigned in 1542 by King Henry VIII to the Dean and Chapter of Rochester.
In 1559, Warham St Leger
inherited the priory from his father. In 1573, St Leger transferred the estate to Sir William Meredith, of Stansty
, Denbighshire
. A pigeon house
was erected in the grounds of the priory. In 1581, Meredith's son, also named William, purchased certain lands in from Warham St Leger that had previously formed part of the estate. The estate passed through Sir Richard Meredith
to Sir Roger Meredith
in 1723. Sir Roger died in 1738, and left the estate to his niece Susanna Meredith. On her death in 1758, the estate passed to Sir George Oxenden
. In 1765, Oxenden sold the estate to John Calcraft
, of Ingress, Kent, who considerably extended the house and landscaped the grounds. Calcraft died in 1772, and the estate passed to his son, John
. The mansion was demolished at the end of the 18th century.
, Rochester, the Kent Archaeological Society
, the Sittingbourne and Swale Archaeological Group and the Thameside Archaeological Group assisted in the excavation.
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...
in Leeds
Leeds, Kent
Leeds is a village and civil parish in the Maidstone District of Kent, England. The parish is located to the east of Maidstone.The village of Leeds is five miles from the county town. It appeared in the Domesday Book of 1086 called Esledes - an old English word meaning slope or hillside...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, 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...
that was founded in 1119 and dissolved in 1539. A mansion was later built on the site of the priory, it was demolished in the late C18th.
Description
The original priory church was built in the NormanNorman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
style. Materials used in the construction were Kentish Ragstone, with Caen stone
Caen stone
Caen stone or Pierre de Caen, is a light creamy-yellow Jurassic limestone quarried in northwestern France near the city of Caen.The limestone is a fine grained oolitic limestone formed in shallow water lagoons in the Bathonian Age about 167 million years ago...
corners. It had a vaulted porch, similar to that to be seen today at Snettisham
Snettisham
Snettisham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is located near the west coast of Norfolk, some south of the seaside resort of Hunstanton, north of the town of King's Lynn and north-west of the city of Norwich....
church, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
. In the 1320s, the nave
Nave
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...
was rebuilt, and the north transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
was enlarged in the Decorated style. The south transept may have been rebuilt at this time. At a later date, probably in the late 1380s or early 1390s, the presbytery
Presbytery (architecture)
The presbytery is the name for an area in a church building which is reserved for the clergy.In the oldest church it is separated by short walls, by small columns and pilasters in the Renaissance ones; it can also be raised, being reachable by a few steps, usually with railings....
was replaced. This was a reversal of the normal process, where the presbytery was rebuilt before the nave and transepts. A probable cause was the sharply rising ground immediately east of the church presenting a barrier to extension. The chapter house
Chapter house
A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room attached to a cathedral or collegiate church in which meetings are held. They can also be found in medieval monasteries....
adjoined the south transept, it was built c1160.
The main church formed the northern part of the priory, with ranges to the east, west, and south. The warming house
Warming house
The warming house was an important room or building in a mediaeval monastery in Western Europe. It was here that a communal fire was kept so that the monks could warm themselves after long hours of study in the cloister or other work...
was probably in the south range. The kitchen was adjoining the south range.
History
The Priory of St Mary and St Nicholas, also known as Leeds Abbey, was founded in 1119. Its founders were Robert de Crevequer and his son Adam. The priory was occupied by the Black FriarsOrder of Saint Augustine
The Order of St. Augustine —historically Ordo Eremitarum Sancti Augustini", O.E.S.A.), generally called Augustinians is a Catholic Religious Order, which, although more ancient, was formally created in the thirteenth century and combined of several previous Augustinian eremetical Orders into one...
. In 1177, Robert de Crevequer's son, also named Robert, bequeathed a fulling mill on the River Len to the priory in his will. The mill remained in the ownership of the priory until its dissolution. As well as Brandescombe Mill, the priory also possessed Abbey Mill at its dissolution.
In 1198, Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III was Pope from 8 January 1198 until his death. His birth name was Lotario dei Conti di Segni, sometimes anglicised to Lothar of Segni....
confirmed the priory as falling under the See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
of Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
. In 1368, the donations of the de Crevequers were confirmed by King Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
, who also confirmed his patronage of the priory. In 1384, the priory was valued at £220. 12s. 8d.
£sd
£sd was the popular name for the pre-decimal currencies used in the Kingdom of England, later the United Kingdom, and ultimately in much of the British Empire...
About this time, during the reign of King Richard II
Richard II of England
Richard II was King of England, a member of the House of Plantagenet and the last of its main-line kings. He ruled from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. Richard was a son of Edward, the Black Prince, and was born during the reign of his grandfather, Edward III...
, canon Thomas Hazlewood came to Leeds Priory. He wrote several history books here, including A Compendious Chronicle. In 1452, King Richard III
Richard III of England
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
confirmed the liberties of the priory.
By 1487, the priory was deeply in debt. James Goldwell
James Goldwell
James Goldwell was a medieval Dean of Salisbury and Bishop of Norwich.Goldwell was nominated on 17 July 1472 and was consecrated on 4 October 1472. He died on 15 February 1499.-References:...
, Bishop of Norwich
Bishop of Norwich
The Bishop of Norwich is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers most of the County of Norfolk and part of Suffolk. The see is in the City of Norwich where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided...
, made generous donations to the priory, and gave sufficient support for an additional priest. Leeds Priory was dissolved
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
in 1539, then being valued at £362. 7s. 7d. The last prior, Thomas Day, received a pension
Pension
In general, a pension is an arrangement to provide people with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income from employment. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum.The terms retirement...
of £80 per annum from the King
Henry 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...
.
After the priory had been dissolved, the King leased it to Anthony St Leger
Anthony St Leger (Lord Deputy of Ireland)
Sir Anthony St Leger was Lord Deputy of Ireland during the Tudor period.The eldest son of Ralph St Leger, a gentleman of Kent and Elizabeth Haut. He was educated abroad and at the University of Cambridge. He quickly gained the favour of King Henry VIII, and in 1537 was appointed president of a...
for 21 years, at a rent of £22. 17s. 2d. per annum. The lease included both mills and 323 acres (130.7 ha) of land, and all houses etc associated with the priory. The priory itself was demolished and the materials carried away. In 1551, King Edward VI
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
granted the site of the priory and land and woods in Broomfield, Langley
Langley, Kent
Langley is a village and civil parish in the Maidstone District of Kent, England. The parish is located on the A274 road leading south from Maidstone to Headcorn .-History:...
, Leeds and Sutton Valence
Sutton Valence
Sutton Valence is a village some five miles SE of Maidstone, Kent, England on the Greensand Ridge overlooking the Vale of Kent and Weald. One of the main landmarks in the village is , of which only the ruins of the 12th century keep remain, under the ownership of English Heritage, open any...
amounting to 229 acres (92.7 ha) to St Leger to be held in capite
Capite
In old English law, a capite was a tenure, abolished by Act 12 Chas. II, xxiv., by which either person or land was held immediately of the king, or of his crown, either by knight-service or socage. A holder of a capite is termed a Tenant-in-chief....
. The remainder of the estate had been assigned in 1542 by King Henry VIII to the Dean and Chapter of Rochester.
In 1559, Warham St Leger
Warham St Leger
-Life:He was second son of Sir Anthony St Leger by his wife Agnes, daughter of Sir Hugh Warham, brother of Archbishop William Warham, and was born probably about 1525. His eldest brother, William, was disinherited; the third brother, Sir Anthony St Leger, was made Master of the Rolls in Ireland in...
inherited the priory from his father. In 1573, St Leger transferred the estate to Sir William Meredith, of Stansty
Stansty
Stansty is a ward in Wrexham County Borough in Wales, lying to the immediate north-west of the town of Wrexham.-Geography, name:Stansty consists of Higher Stansty and Lower Stansty; Higher Stansty lies near to Summerhill and Moss Valley within the community of Gwersyllt and is north of the A483 road...
, Denbighshire
Denbighshire
Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...
. A pigeon house
Dovecote
A dovecote or dovecot is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be square or circular free-standing structures or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pigeonholes for the birds to nest. Pigeons and doves were an important food source historically in...
was erected in the grounds of the priory. In 1581, Meredith's son, also named William, purchased certain lands in from Warham St Leger that had previously formed part of the estate. The estate passed through Sir Richard Meredith
Sir Richard Meredith, 2nd Baronet
Sir Richard Meredith, 2nd Baronet was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1656 to 1659.Meredith was the son of Sir William Meredith, 1st Baronet of Leeds Abbey, Kent and his wife Susanna Barker of London...
to Sir Roger Meredith
Sir Roger Meredith, 5th Baronet
Sir Roger Meredith, 5th Baronet was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1727 to 1734.Meredith was the son of Sir Richard Meredith, 2nd Baronet and his wife Susanna Skippon, daughter of Philip Skippon of Foulsham Norfolk...
in 1723. Sir Roger died in 1738, and left the estate to his niece Susanna Meredith. On her death in 1758, the estate passed to Sir George Oxenden
Sir George Oxenden, 5th Baronet
Sir George Oxenden, 5th Baronet was an English Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1720 to 1754....
. In 1765, Oxenden sold the estate to John Calcraft
John Calcraft
John Calcraft the elder , of Rempstone in Dorset and Ingress in Kent, was an English army agent and politician.-Business career:...
, of Ingress, Kent, who considerably extended the house and landscaped the grounds. Calcraft died in 1772, and the estate passed to his son, John
John Calcraft (the younger)
John Calcraft the younger , of Rempstone in Dorset and Ingress in Kent, was an English landowner and Member of Parliament....
. The mansion was demolished at the end of the 18th century.
Excavations
The site of the priory was partially excavated in 1846. In 1973, an excavation of the site took place over eleven weeks in total, covering all four seasons. Members of the Archaeological Society of Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical SchoolSir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School
Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School is a boys' grammar school in Rochester, Kent, often known as Rochester Math or The Math. It was founded by the 17th-century politician Sir Joseph Williamson, who left £5,000 to set up the school and another in Thetford in Norfolk...
, Rochester, the Kent Archaeological Society
Kent Archaeological Society
The Kent Archaeological Society was founded in 1857 to promote the study and publication of archaeology and history, especially that pertaining to the ancient county of Kent in England...
, the Sittingbourne and Swale Archaeological Group and the Thameside Archaeological Group assisted in the excavation.