Lavendon Abbey was a

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular in the Catholic Chur ...

abbey near

Lavendon Lavendon is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority area of the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. It is the northernmost village in the Milton Keynes UA and South East England, near Olney, about WNW of Bedford and N ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. The abbey was established by John de Bidun between 1154 and 1158 and dedicated to

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

. Bidun's donations to the abbey, together with those of Sibyl de Aungerville, Ranulf Earl of Chester, Ralf de Bray and Richard de Beauchamp, were confirmed by Henry III in 1227. At this point the abbey's possessions included the churches of Lavendon and Lathbury in Buckinghamshire, Wootton in

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

Shelton Shelton may refer to: Places United Kingdom *Shelton, North Bedfordshire, in the parish of Dean and Shelton, Bedfordshire * Lower Shelton, in the parish of Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire * Upper Shelton, in the parish of Marston Moretaine, Bedf ...

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated ''Beds'') is a Ceremonial County, ceremonial county in the East of England. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Hertfordshire to the south and the south-east, and Buckin ...

and

Stow Bedon Stow Bedon is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Stow Bedon and Breckles, in the Breckland district of the English county of Norfolk. Stow Bedon adjoins the hamlet of Lower Stow Bedon, although the two are often considered ...

, Kirby Bedon and Thompson in

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

. However, a succession of unsuccessful legal actions caused the abbey to lose control of all but Lavendon and Lathbury, though they later acquired the churches of Brayfield, Ashton and

Shotteswell Shotteswell is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 221. The parish is bounded on three sides by Oxfordshire and is about north-west of Banbury. ...

. The abbey was suppressed in 1536, as part of the first phase of the Dissolution of the Monasteries. At this point the inhabitants comprised 11 canons (9 priests and 2 novices) and 20 servants; its revenues were estimated at £79 13s 8d (). The last Abbot, William Gales, was granted a pension of £12 (). Nothing is visible above ground of the original buildings of the abbey, but the surrounding earthworks, field system and the remains of two

fish pond A fish pond or fishpond is a controlled pond, small artificial lake or retention basin that is stocked with fish and is used in aquaculture for fish farming, for recreational fishing, or for ornamental purposes. Fish ponds are a classical g ...

s are a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...

References

Monasteries in Buckinghamshire 1150s establishments in England Premonstratensian monasteries in England Christian monasteries established in the 1150s 1536 disestablishments in England {{UK-Christian-monastery-stub