The Charterhouse (Hull Charterhouse) was a Carthusian monastery and

almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) was charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the medieval era. They were often targeted at the poor of a locality, at those from certain ...

in Kingston upon Hull, England, built just outside the town's walls. The hospital building survived the Dissolution of the Monasteries; the priory was destroyed in 1538. The structure of the hospital was destroyed before the

first siege of Hull The first Siege of Hull marked a major escalation in the conflict between King Charles I and Parliament during the build-up to the First English Civil War. Charles sought to secure the large arsenal held in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Y ...

during the English Civil War. A replacement was built in 1645, which was replaced again in 1780; the buildings function as an almshouse with an attached chapel, and remain in use to the present day (2012). The area around and including the Charterhouse was designated a conservation area in 1975, which includes a Victorian board school – Charterhouse School – and an 18th-century burial ground.

History

According to Tickell in ''The History of the Town and County of Kingston Upon Hull'' (1796), there was a religious house at the Charterhouse site from the time of

Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...

. It is certain that the land became the property of

William de la Pole William is a masculine given name of Norman French origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conques ...

in the 14th century. He established a hospital there, known as the ''Maison Dieu'', around 1350. According to the ''Chronicle of Melsa'', during William's life there was at one time a community of thirteen men and two women living there, as well as a college of six priests; as a result of conflict within and without the community they were removed, and later the Friars Minor occupied the place. William had acquired a license from

Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring r ...

to establish a monastery there, and intended to found one for the Poor Clares, but died before it could be completed. His son, Michael de la Pole, completed the foundation of a monastery in 1377, dedicated to Saint Michael, to house thirteen monks of the

Carthusian Order The Carthusians, also known as the Order of Carthusians ( la, Ordo Cartusiensis), are a Latin enclosed religious order of the Catholic Church. The order was founded by Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns. The order h ...

. William, Duke of Suffolk (great-grandson of William the founder) was buried here by his widow,

Alice Chaucer Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

, as was his wish, this being their family church (and not in the Wingfield church as is sometimes stated). The monastery income in 1535 was over £230, with a net income of £174 18s 3d, but was not dissolved by the Dissolution of the Lesser Monasteries Act, and received license to continued from the King. It was suppressed in 1538, and the priory was destroyed. The hospital had been rendered to the crown in 1506 on account of the actions of Edmund de la Pole, 3rd Duke of Suffolk, but was restored in 1553 to the mayor and burgesses of Hull. The hospital became known as the Charterhouse after the former priory. In the English Civil War the hospital building was demolished, before the

First Siege of Hull The first Siege of Hull marked a major escalation in the conflict between King Charles I and Parliament during the build-up to the First English Civil War. Charles sought to secure the large arsenal held in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Y ...

(1642), to prevent it being used by besieging forces. It was rebuilt in 1645 at a cost of £474; further cells and a chapel were built from 1663 to 1673. It was rebuilt again in 1780, and extended in 1803. By the 1860s the hospital cared for 70 pensioners, each with an allowance of 6s per week. The Master's House is thought to incorporate part of the 1650 hospital, it was damaged during the Second World War, and restored in 1950. Both the Charterhouse and Master's House are listed buildings. As of 2002 the Charterhouse still functioned as an almshouse.

Charterhouse School

The nearby Charterhouse School to the east of the present Charterhouse is a Victorian development – a board school designed by

William Botterill William Botterill and Son was a prominent Kingston upon Hull architectural practice. The practice was founded by William Botterill (1820–1903), who worked with his son William Henry Botterill (1851–79), and after 1881 with John Bilson (1858 ...

, built in 1881. The school consists of a single-storey infants' school, and a two-storey segregated school, with separate boys' and girls' entrances; the girls' classrooms were on the first floor. It became a secondary school in 1950. In 1967 the school became an annexe of

Hull College Hull College is a Further Education and Higher Education establishment based in Kingston upon Hull, England. It provides vocational courses, apprenticeships, Higher Education and adult learning courses, with a focus on equipping young peo ...

. By 2015, the site had been sold by the College.

References

Sources

* * * *

Literature

Locations

*, Charterhouse (current) *, Master's House, Charterhouse *, Priory (site of) *, Charterhouse school (primary) *, Charterhouse school (mixed)

External links

* * {{authority control Archaeological sites in the East Riding of Yorkshire English medieval hospitals and almshouses Buildings and structures in Kingston upon Hull Burial sites of the De la Pole family Carthusian monasteries in England Monasteries dissolved under the English Reformation Grade I listed buildings in the East Riding of Yorkshire Grade I listed hospital buildings Historic buildings in Kingston upon Hull Monasteries in the East Riding of Yorkshire Religiously motivated violence in England Ruined abbeys and monasteries 1377 establishments in England 1538 disestablishments in England Grade I listed monasteries