Boxgrove Priory is a ruined

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

in the village of

Boxgrove Boxgrove is a village, parish, ecclesiastical parish and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Chichester (district), Chichester District of the English county of West Sussex, about north east of the city of Chichester. The village is ...

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

, England. It was founded in the 12th century.

History

Origins

The Priory was founded in the reign of Henry I, about 1123 by Robert de Haia (or de la Haye), Lord of Halnacre by gift of the king. A Saxon church had existed on the site before the Conquest. The Priory was founded for three

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monks, and was a dependency by the

Lessay Abbey The Abbey of the Holy Trinity () is an 11th century Romanesque architecture, Romanesque Benedictines, Benedictine Abbey church located in Lessay, Manche, France, then in Normandy. The abbey is one of the most important Norman architecture, Norman ...

in Normandy. In about 1126, upon the marriage of Robert's daughter Cecily to Roger St John the number of monks living at Boxgrove was increased from the original three to six. Robert had died by 1165. By 1187 there were 15 monks. A 19th monk was added to the priory in about 1230 by William de Kainesham,

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

Chichester Chichester ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in the Chichester District, Chichester district of West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher ...

. By 1535 the priory's possessions were worth £185 19s. 8d. gross, and £145 10s. 2½d. clear.

Dissolution

The

Priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. They were created by the Catholic Church. Priories may be monastic houses of monks or nuns (such as the Benedictines, the Cistercians, or t ...

was dissolved in 1536. At the time of the dissolution there were eight priests and one novice, as well as twenty-eight servants and eight children living in the priory. After the dissolution, the Priory church became the parish church.

Modern history

The Priory church is still in use as the Church of St Mary and St Blaise. The ruins are a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

Burials

Lady Philippa Mortimer Lady Philippa Mortimer (21 November 1375 – 26 September 1400) was a medieval English noblewoman, the granddaughter of Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence, and great-granddaughter of King Edward III. Family Phillipa was born at Ludlow Cas ...

(died 1400) Weir, Alison (1999). ''Britain's Royal Family: A Complete Genealogy''. London: The Bodley Head. pp. 97–98. *Thomas Poynings, 5th Baron St John

References

External links

Detailed historical record for Boxgrove Priory

English Heritage
{{Coord, 50, 51, 37.8, N, 0, 42, 39.7, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title 1060s establishments in England 1536 disestablishments in England Benedictine monasteries in England Church of England church buildings in West Sussex Grade I listed monasteries Grade I listed buildings in West Sussex Monasteries in West Sussex Ruins in West Sussex English Heritage sites in West Sussex Christian monasteries established in the 1060s Monasteries dissolved under the English Reformation