Cistercian nunneries in Britain and Ireland
(1)
| NAME |
LOCATION |
FOUNDATION |
Remains |
Anecdotes |
| Ballymore |
Ireland * |
|
|
|
| Basedale |
England, Yorkshire |
c. 1162
Begins c. 1162 as Hutton Rudby, then becomes Nunthorpe and
c. 1189 known as Basedale.(2) |
Private |
In the early fourteenth century nuns of Basedale were reprimanded
for breaking rules of enclosure and gadding around the countryside. |
| Catesby |
England, Northamptonshire |
c. 1175 |
|
The prioress of Catesby in 1442 was evidently a rather feisty
character and was accused, amongst other things, of hurling abuse
at the nuns, pulling their hair and pawning the priory’s
jewels.(3) |
| Cookhill |
Robert Smith
(alias Stainthorpe) |
England, Worcestershire |
|
Mismanagement of the nunnery’s finances meant that in
1285 the archbishop of York recommended that Cookhill’s
chaplain, Thomas, should have full control over temporal affairs.(4) |
| Coldstream |
Scotland ** |
|
|
In 1296 Edward I and his army of c. 8000 men encamped here
and were provided for to the cost of c. £118; the community
received 700 sheep in return.(5) |
| Derry |
Ireland * |
|
|
|
| Ellerton (in Swaledale) |
England, Yorkshire |
1154x1189; founder unidentified.(6) |
Fifteenth-century tower and fragments of church; private
land, but visible from the road. |
At the dissolution of the priory in 1536 there were six nuns.
Two transferred to Nun Appleton and another, who had given birth,
to Swine Priory. The prioress, Joan, withdrew to Richmond where
she seemingly led a rather impoverished life.(7) |
Esholt
[‘The priory under the hill.’] |
England, Yorkshire |
Twelfth century
founder unidentified (8) |
Fragments in Esholt Hall; private. |
1445 was a devastating year for Esholt – the river flooded
and the priory’s bell-tower had fallen into a ruinous state.
In response to the nuns’ plight, the archbishop of York
granted 200 days’ indulgence to anyone who would either
contribute to the relief of the nuns or help with the repair
work.(9) |
| Fosse |
England, Lincolnshire |
Pre 1184 |
|
In the mid-fifteenth century Fosse was in financial difficulties
and the priory’s buildings were in need of repair.(10) |
| Gokewell |
England, Lincolnshire |
Pre 1148 |
|
In 1440 Bishop Alnwick instructed the nuns of Gokewell that
no boys under the age of eight or girls under the age of ten
should be allowed to board at their house.(11) |
| Greenfield |
England, Lincolnshire |
Pre 1153 |
|
Although the nuns of Greenfield were not officially recognised
as part of the Cistercian Order, they wore the distinctive Cistercian
habit of undyed wool. |
| Hampole |
England, Yorkshire |
Pre 1156; founded William de Clarefai and his wife, Avice
de Tany.(12) |
A few stone fragments in the vicinity; private. |
The mystic and hermit, Richard Rolle, was the nuns’ spiritual
advisor in the fourteenth century and was buried at the priory
following his death in 1349. |
| Handale |
England, Yorkshire |
1133, by William de Percy of Dunstey (13) |
Farmhouse in vicinity; may incorporate one wall of the priory;
private. |
Religious observances were seemingly followed by the nuns of
Handale, for relatively few injunctions were issued following
visitation of the priory in 1315. |
| Heynings |
England, Lincolnshire |
Post 1135 |
|
The nuns of Heynings allegedly enjoyed late night drinking
sessions in the priory’s guestchamber, especially with
visitors.(14) |
| Keldholme |
England, Yorkshire |
Pre 1142; Burton – 1154x66; founded Robert de Stuteville
III. (15) |
Private |
The appointment of a new prioress, Joan Pickering, in 1314,
sparked off a rebellion at Keldholme. The ringleaders were
sent to cool off at other the nearby priories of Handale, Nun
Appleton, Swine and Wallingwells. |
| Kirklees |
England, Yorkshire |
c. 1135 x 1140 or 1160 x 1190, depending on whether it was
Reiner the Fleming I or II who founded the community.(16) |
Private house on site; gatehouse mostly post-suppression.
Also outer buildings now a farm |
The prioress of Kirklees and her five nuns surrendered their
priory to the royal commissioners in November 1539; the priory
was valued at £19 8s 2d.(17) |
| Legbourne |
England, Lincolns. |
Post 1150 |
|
In 1440 there were complaints that a secular woman, Margaret
Ingoldesby, not only slept in the nuns’ dormitory but brought
her birds along, which kept the nuns awake at night.(18) |
Llanllugan
[proud Llanllugan’] |
Wales*** |
Late twelfth century
Under the auspices of the abbot of Strata Marcella. |
Stained glass window; parish church |
‘the chalk-white ones’.
The mill here has been modified to form a house. (19) |
Llanll_r
[‘holy Llanll_r’] |
Wales*** |
Late twelfth century
Under the auspices of the abbot of Strata Marcella. |
|
‘the white maidens’ |
| *Marham (offical abbey) |
England, Norfolk |
1249
One of the two fully-incorporated Cistercian nunneries |
Considerable earthworks and also standing masonry from the
church and outer parlour. |
|
| Nun Appleton |
England, Yorkshire |
c. 1150 by Alice of St Quentin.(20) |
House on site; private. |
The nuns were reminded to observe silence at all times and
to provide appropriate care for their sick. |
| Nun Cotham |
England, Lincolnshire |
1147x1153 |
|
The nuns were reminded to observe silence at all times and
to provide appropriate care for their sick. |
| Perth (Elcho) ** |
Scotland |
|
St Leonard’s Hospital |
Elcho was one of several communities burned when the English invaded Scotland in 1543-8. |
| Pinley |
England, Warwickshire |
Pre 1135 |
|
|
| Rosedale |
England, Yorkshire |
Pre 1160; founded William, son of Turgis de Rosedale.(21) |
Remains include the turret |
In the early fourteenth century the nuns of Rosedale were warned that they should not bring their lap-dogs into the church when celebrating the Canonical Hours, for these were a distraction. |
| Sewardsley |
England, Northamptonshire |
1154x89 |
|
In 1434 the bishop of Lincoln reacted to reports that the nuns
had ‘given their minds to debauchery’, committing
in public acts of adultery, incest, sacrilege and fornification, ‘to
the death of their own souls, the shame of religion and the mischievous
example of others.’ He sent a commissioner to investigate
matters and correct these abuses.(22) |
| Sinningthwaite |
England, Yorkshire |
Pre 1155; founded Bertram Haget.(23) |
E/w ranges now a farmhouse; private. |
In 1520, the widow, Margaret Dodsworth, whose daughter was
a nun of Sinningthwaite, left a handkerchief and an ivory coffer
to Isobel Stapleton, who was also a nun of the priory.(24) |
| Stixwould |
England, Lincolnshire |
c.1135 |
|
In the late thirteenth century Stixwould was one of five nunneries
exporting at least fifteen sacks of wool.(25) |
| Swine |
England, Yorkshire |
Pre 1153
1143x53; founded Robert de Verli.(26) |
St Mary’s parish church, now; part of east end the former nunnery; also monuments to Hilton family and original choir stalls.
Significant remains and open to public.
|
Financial difficulties meant that in 1268 the nuns of Swine
were forced to disband, temporarily. Their predicament had been
caused by the chaplains and lay-brothers misappropriating funds.(27) |
| Tarrant- Kaines (official – abbey) |
England, Dorset |
One of the two fully-incorporated Cistercian nunneries in
England.
Founded pre 1228.
A hermitage that became a nunnery.(28) |
Only a barn now survives. |
In 1343 the abbess of Tarrant was granted permission to cut
down 200 acres of underwood, on account of the great devastation
her community had suffered following the invasion of the king’s
enemies in those parts.(29) |
| Whistones |
England, Worcestershire |
1237-40 |
|
Alice de la Flagge, who was unanimously elected prioress of
Whistones, was described as ‘a
woman of discreet life and morals, of lawful age, professed in
the nunnery, born of lawful matrimony and prudent in spiritual
and temporal matters’.(30) |
| Wintney |
England, Hampshire |
Pre 1200 |
|
|
| Wykeham |
England, Yorkshire |
Pre 1153; founded Pain FitzOsbert.(31) |
Parts of the church survive (north wall); private. |
Katherine Nandyke, the former prioress of Wykeham, remembered
her nuns in her will of 1542 and left each of them 6s 8d; to
Mary Percy she also left her branded cow.(32) |
