List of monastic houses in Northamptonshire

Catesby Priory

Brixworth Priory

Canons Ashby Priory

Catesby Priory

Chacombe Priory

Daventry Priory

Deene Priory

Delapré Abbey

Dingley Preceptory

Everdon Priory

Fineshade Priory

Fotheringhay Nunnery

Grafton Regis Priory

Kalendar Priory

NORTHAMPTON (see below)

Pipewell Abbey

Preston Capes Priory

Rothwell Priory

Sewardsley Priory

Sulby Abbey

Weedon Monastery

Weedon Beck Priory

Weedon Pinkney (Weedon Lois) Priory

Wothorpe Priory

Locations of monastic houses in Northamptonshire

Northampton Abbey (site)

Austin Friars

Blackfriars (prob. site)

Friars of the Sack (prob. site)

Greyfriars

St Andrews Priory

Whitefriars

Locations of monastic houses in Northamptonshire

The following is a list of monastic houses in Northamptonshire, England.

In this article alien houses are included, as are smaller establishments such as cells and notable monastic granges (particularly those with resident monks), and also camerae of the military orders of monks (Templars and Hospitallers). The numerous monastic hospitals per se are not included here unless at some time the foundation had, or was purported to have the status or function of an abbey, priory, friary or preceptory/commandery.

The name of the county is given where there is reference to an establishment in another county. Where the county has changed since the foundation's dissolution the modern county is given in parentheses, and in instances where the referenced foundation ceased to exist before the unification of England, the kingdom is given, followed by the modern county in parentheses.

The geographical co-ordinates provided are sourced from the details provided by Historic England PastScape and Ordnance Survey publications.

A Monastic Glossary follows the listing, which provides links to articles on the particular monastic orders as well as other terms which appear in the listing.

Abbreviations and key

Alphabetical listing of establishments

Foundation	Image	Communities & Provenance	Formal Name or Dedication & Alternative Names	OnLine References & Location
Brackley Blackfriars		hospital of Ss James and John; Dominican Friars (1420) intended conversion of hospital never implemented
Brixworth Abbey +		Saxon monastery Benedictine? monks founded after 675; daughter church of Medehamstede (Peterborough), Mercia (Cambridgeshire); probably became a minster; destroyed? 870 in raids by the Danes; parochial c.960-70; now parochial: All Saints' Church, Brixworth		[1] 52°20′02″N 0°54′16″W / 52.3339558°N 0.9043148°W / 52.3339558; -0.9043148 (Brixworth Priory)
Canons Ashby Priory +		Augustinian Canons Regular founded 1147-51 (during the reign of Stephen) by Stephen de Leye; dissolved 1536; became nunnery; granted to Sir Francis Bryan 1537/8; converted into secular residence; part of church now in parochial use	The Priory Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Ashby ____________________ Canon's Ashby Priory Ashby Priory	[2][3] 52°09′00″N 1°09′24″W / 52.1500132°N 1.1567965°W / 52.1500132; -1.1567965 (Canons Ashby Priory)
Castor Priory		Saxon nuns founded before 664-5; destroyed by the Danes c.870 (or, less likely, 1010)	Dormundescastre Priory
Catesby Priory		evidently initially Benedictine nuns founded c.1175 by Robert de Esseby (Ashby); order by papal bull c.1189; Cistercian nuns founded c.1175; Augustinian Canons Regular founded after 1175 (associated with the Cistercian nunnery); (given as Gilbertine in the Mappa Mundi); with regular priests or brethren (from date unknown to after 1316) dissolved 1536; granted to John Onley 1536/7; house built on site 16th century; demolished 1863	St Mary and St Edmund or St Mary, St Edmund and St Thomas the Martyr (?) ____________________ Katebi Priory; Katesbey Priory	[4][5][6] 52°13′49″N 1°14′24″W / 52.2303639°N 1.2400429°W / 52.2303639; -1.2400429 (Catesby Priory) 52°13′53″N 1°14′51″W / 52.2312954°N 1.247364°W / 52.2312954; -1.247364 (Catesby Priory)
Chacombe Priory		Augustinian Canons Regular founded between 1216 and 1272 (during the reign of Henry II); dissolved 1536; granted to Michael Fox 1544/5; house named 'Chacombe Priory' built 17th century on the site	Chalcombe Priory	[7][8] 52°05′28″N 1°17′22″W / 52.0911438°N 1.2894049°W / 52.0911438; -1.2894049 (Chacombe Priory)
Daventry Priory		Cluniac monks (founded initially at Preston Capes c.1090); transferred here 1107-8; alien house: dependent on La Charite; allegedly seceded from Cluniac Order c.1231, although apparently reported directly to La Charite 1298, 1390 and 1405; became denizen: independent from 1405; dissolved 1525; granted to Christ Church, Oxford; Holy Cross church attached to the west range of the claustral buildings, demolished and replaced 19th century	St Augustine ____________________ Daventre Priory	[9][10][11] 52°15′31″N 1°09′32″W / 52.2586706°N 1.1590067°W / 52.2586706; -1.1590067 (Daventry Priory)
Deene Priory		Benedictine monks priory cell, dependent on Westminster; founded before 1066; dissolved after 1086		[12] 52°31′03″N 0°36′05″W / 52.5176131°N 0.6013727°W / 52.5176131; -0.6013727 (Deene Priory)
Delapré Abbey		Cluniac nuns founded c.1145, built by Simon de St Liz (Senlis) II, Earl of Northampton; dissolved 15 December 1538; granted to John Merabe 1542/3	St Mary ____________________ Northampton, Delapre Abbey; de Pratis	[13][14][15] 52°13′28″N 0°53′22″W / 52.2245036°N 0.8893695°W / 52.2245036; -0.8893695 (Delapré Abbey)
Dingley Preceptory		Knights Hospitallers founded before 1154; merged with Battisford 1461; dissolved 1540; granted to Edward Griffith 1544		[16][17] 52°28′57″N 0°51′57″W / 52.4824323°N 0.8658063°W / 52.4824323; -0.8658063 (Dingley Preceptory)
Everdon Priory #		Benedictine monks alien house: grange dependent on Bernay founded before c.1100; considered by some a parcel of Creeting St. Mary; dependent Eton College before 1367; dissolved before c.1399; granted to Eton College 1440; remains recorded 1720; not locatable by 1970		[18][19] 52°12′42″N 1°07′34″W / 52.2115809°N 1.1262435°W / 52.2115809; -1.1262435 (Everdon Priory)
Fineshade Priory		Augustinian Canons Regular founded before 1208 by Richard Engayne (Engain), Lord of Blatherwike; dissolved 1536; granted to John, Lord Russell 1541/2; Sir Robert Kirkham converted west range into to a country residence, which was demolished along with the remains of the priory 1749; house subsequently built on site; demolished 1956	St Mary ____________________ Castle Hymel Priory	[20][21] 52°34′08″N 0°33′54″W / 52.56883°N 0.56513°W / 52.56883; -0.56513 (Fineshade Priory)
Fotheringhay Nunnery		Cluniac nuns founded c1141(?) transferred to Delapré c.1145; secular college founded on site 1411, with associated church c.1460; dissolved 1548; granted to James Crew	Fodringhey College	[22][23] 52°31′32″N 0°26′23″W / 52.525486°N 0.4397079°W / 52.525486; -0.4397079 (Fotheringhay Nunnery)
Grafton Regis Priory		Augustininan Canons Regular cell or hermitage; founded 1180-1205; amalgamated with the Abbey of St James's, Northampton before 1400 (end of 14th century)	St Mary and St Michael ____________________ Grafton Regis Hermitage	[24][25] 52°06′52″N 0°54′09″W / 52.11444°N 0.9026344°W / 52.11444; -0.9026344 (Grafton Regis Priory)
Guilsborough Preceptory		Knights Hospitaller camera/hospital founded before 1285; dissolved before 1338
Kalendar Priory		Premonstratensian canons priory?/cell, dependent on Sulby; founded after 1155: land granted by William Buttevant; probably ceased to exist before 1291(?)	St John ____________________ Kayland Priory Kaylend Priory	[26] 52°21′55″N 0°59′17″W / 52.365174°N 0.9881204°W / 52.365174; -0.9881204 (Kalendar Priory)
Luffield Priory, Syresham	Partly in Buckinghamshire. See entry under List of monastic houses in Buckinghamshire
Northampton Abbey		Augustinian Canons Regular founded c.1145-50 by William Peverel II of Nottingham; dissolved August 1538; granted to Nicholas Giffard 1545/6; housing estate now occupies site	The Abbey Church of Saint James, known as Northampton Abbey in St James End, Northampton	[27][28][29] 52°14′26″N 0°55′30″W / 52.2404941°N 0.924992°W / 52.2404941; -0.924992 (Northampton Abbey (site))
Northampton Austin Friars		Augustinian Friars (under the Limit of Oxford) founded 1275-90 (or possibly not before 1323 by Sir John Longville, of Wolverton[note 1]); dissolved 1538; granted to Robert Dighton 1540/1		[30][31] 52°14′04″N 0°53′53″W / 52.2344757°N 0.898068°W / 52.2344757; -0.898068 (Northampton Austin Friars)
Northampton Blackfriars ~		Dominican Friars (under the Visitation of Oxford) founded before 1233; dissolved 1538; granted to William Ramesden 1544/5		[32][33] 52°14′12″N 0°54′01″W / 52.2366703°N 0.9001976°W / 52.2366703; -0.9001976 (Northampton Blackfriars (prob. site)) (probable)
Northampton Friars of the Sack		Friars of the Sack founded before 1271; abandoned (before(?)) 1303		[34] 52°14′08″N 0°53′23″W / 52.2354934°N 0.889686°W / 52.2354934; -0.889686 (Northampton Friars of the Sack (prob. site)) (probable)
Northampton Greyfriars, earlier site		Franciscan Friars (under the Custody of Oxford) founded 1226 by Sir Richard Gobion; transferred to new site (see immediately below) c.1235		[35][36]
Northampton Greyfriars		Franciscan Friars (under the Custody of Oxford) transferred from earlier site (see immediately above) c.1235; built by 1258; dissolved 1538; granted to Richard Taverner 1544/5		[35][36] 52°14′22″N 0°53′42″W / 52.2393345°N 0.8950049°W / 52.2393345; -0.8950049 (Northampton Greyfriars)
Northampton — St Andrew's Priory		Cluniac monks alien house: dependent on La Charité founded 1093-1100; became denizen: independent from 1405; dissolved 1538; site built over 19th century	St Andrew	[37][38] 52°14′38″N 0°54′11″W / 52.2438839°N 0.9029523°W / 52.2438839; -0.9029523 (Northampton — St Andrews Priory)
Northampton Whitefriars		Camelite Friars founded before 1265 (1271) by Simon Montford and Thomas Chitwood; dissolved 1538; granted to William Ramesden 1544/6		[39][40] 52°14′27″N 0°53′41″W / 52.2409326°N 0.8946843°W / 52.2409326; -0.8946843 (Northampton Whitefriars)
Northampton Nunnery		Franciscan nuns founded 1252; dissolved after 1272
Oxney Priory	Historical county location. See entry under List of monastic houses in Cambridgeshire
Peterborough Abbey	Historical county location. See entry under List of monastic houses in Cambridgeshire
Pipewell Abbey		Cistercian monks daughter of Newminster; founded 13 September 1143 (1141) by William de Boutwylein; dissolved 5 November 1538; granted to William, Marquess of Northampton 1547/8; ruinous by 1548; systematically demolished and used as building material; (not the modern 'Abbey church' to the north)	Pikewell Abbey	[41][42] 52°27′42″N 0°45′56″W / 52.4616512°N 0.7656527°W / 52.4616512; -0.7656527 (Pipewell Abbey)
Preston Capes Priory		Cluniac monks alien house: dependent on La Charité; founded c.1090 by Hugh de Leicester; transferred to Daventry 1107-8		[10][43] 52°10′53″N 1°10′04″W / 52.181274°N 1.1678338°W / 52.181274; -1.1678338 (Preston Capes Priory)
Rothwell Priory		Augustinian canonesses founded before 1262, probably by a member of the Clare family, purportedly by Richard de Clare, Earl of Gloucester; dissolved 1537-8; former farmhouse known as 'The Nunnery' possibly built on site	The Priory Church of Saint John the Baptist, Rothwell	[44][45] 52°25′28″N 0°48′21″W / 52.4245577°N 0.8058348°W / 52.4245577; -0.8058348 (Rothwell Priory)
Sewardsley Priory		Cistercian nuns founded between 1216 and 1272 (during the reign of Henry II) by Richard de Lestre; dependent on the Cluniacs at Delapré 1459/60 for maintenance (though no evidence that the community converted to the Cluniac order); dissolved 1538; granted to Richard Fermer 1550/1	Sewardesley Priory	[46][47] 52°09′03″N 0°57′13″W / 52.1508575°N 0.9534824°W / 52.1508575; -0.9534824 (Sewardsley Priory)
Stamford — St Michael's Priory	Historical county location. See entry under List of monastic houses in Cambridgeshire
Stamford — St Sepulchre Priory	Historical county location. See entry under List of monastic houses in Cambridgeshire
Sulby Abbey		Premonstratensian Canons daughter of Newsham; mistakenly asserted to have transferred from Welford[note 2] founded 1155 by William de Wideville; dissolved 1538; granted to Sir Christopher Hatton 1567/8	Sulbey Abbey; Welford Abbey	[48][49] 52°24′53″N 1°02′04″W / 52.4147151°N 1.0344476°W / 52.4147151; -1.0344476 (Sulby Abbey)
Weedon Monastery		Benedictine? nuns founded c.680 by St Werburgh, possibly on the site of an Anglo-Saxon royal palace; destroyed in raids by the Danes 870		[50] 52°13′35″N 1°04′24″W / 52.2264621°N 1.0732055°W / 52.2264621; -1.0732055 (Weedon Monastery)
Weedon Beck Priory		Benedictine monks alien house: dependent on Bec-Hellouin and St Lambert de Mallassis; founded before 1086 (after 1126); dissolved after 1329(?); granted to Eton College 1462	Weedon Bec Priory	[51][52] 52°13′32″N 1°04′45″W / 52.2255995°N 1.0790835°W / 52.2255995; -1.0790835 (Weedon Beck Priory)
Weedon Pinkney Priory		Benedictine monks founded before 1126 (in the tenure of Robert, Bishop of Lincoln): endowments granted by Gilo de Pinkney and other members of his family; dependent on St Lucien, Beauvais; granted to Biddlesden 1392; manor granted to All Souls College, Oxford 1440	Weedon Lois Priory	[53][54] 52°07′03″N 1°07′18″W / 52.1174129°N 1.121622°W / 52.1174129; -1.121622 (Weedon Pinkney Priory (Weedon Lois Priory))
Wermundsey Monastery		unidentified dependent on Peterborough, possibly located in Northamptonshire founded after 675 during the tenure of Abbot Cuthbald; destroyed in raids by the Danes 870
Wittering Priory	Historical county location. See entry under List of monastic houses in Cambridgeshire
Wothorpe Priory #		possibly intended Augustinian canonesses — Arroasian c.1160(?); Benedictine nuns founded 12th century (purportedly during the reign of Henry I); ruinous 1292; merged with Stamford 1354; granted to Richard Cecil 1540/1	St Mary ____________________ Wyrthorp Priory	[55][56] 52°38′09″N 0°29′12″W / 52.6357765°N 0.4867968°W / 52.6357765; -0.4867968 (Wothorpe Priory)

Glossary

Map link to lists of monastic houses in England by county

Northumberland Durham Lancashire Cheshire Derbs. Notts. Lincolnshire Leics. Staffs. Shropshire Warks. Northants. Norfolk Suffolk Essex Herts. Beds. Bucks. Oxon. Glos. Somerset Wiltshire Berkshire Kent Surrey Hampshire Dorset Devon Cornwall Heref. Worcs. Bristol East Riding of Yorkshire Rutland Cambs. Greater London Tyne & Wear Cumbria North Yorkshire South Yorks. West Yorkshire Greater Manc. Merseyside East Sussex West Sussex Isle of Wight West Midlands

Bedfordshire Berkshire Bristol Buckinghamshire Cambridgeshire Cheshire Cornwall Cumbria Derbyshire Devon Dorset County Durham Essex Gloucestershire Greater Manchester Hampshire Herefordshire Hertfordshire Isle of Wight Kent Lancashire Leicestershire Lincolnshire London Merseyside Norfolk Northamptonshire Northumberland Nottinghamshire Oxfordshire Rutland Shropshire Somerset Staffordshire Suffolk Surrey Sussex, East Sussex, West Tyne and Wear Warwickshire West Midlands Wiltshire Worcestershire Yorkshire, East Riding Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, West

See also

• List of monastic houses in England

Notes

References

• Binns, Alison (1989) Studies in the History of Medieval Religion 1: Dedications of Monastic Houses in England and Wales 1066–1216, Boydell
• Cobbett, William (1868) List of Abbeys, Priories, Nunneries, Hospitals, And Other Religious Foundations in England and Wales and in Ireland, Confiscated, Seized On, or Alienated by the Protestant "Reformation" Sovereigns and Parliaments
• Knowles, David & Hadcock, R. Neville (1971) Medieval Religious Houses England & Wales. Longman
• Morris, Richard (1979) Cathedrals and Abbeys of England and Wales, J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd.
• Thorold, Henry (1986) Collins Guide to Cathedrals, Abbeys and Priories of England and Wales, Collins
• Thorold, Henry (1993) Collins Guide to the Ruined Abbeys of England, Wales and Scotland, Collins
• Wright, Geoffrey N., (2004) Discovering Abbeys and Priories, Shire Publications Ltd.
• English Cathedrals and Abbeys, Illustrated, Odhams Press Ltd.
• Map of Monastic Britain, South Sheet, Ordnance Survey, 2nd edition, 1954