Ravenstone Priory was a medieval monastic house in

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It was established c.1255 and was dissolved in 1524.

History

Ravenstone Priory was founded c.1255 on land owned by

Peter Chaceporc Peter Chaceporc (died 1254) was Keeper of the Wardrobe under Henry III of England, and an Archdeacon of Wells. Life Peter was from Poitou, the area of France from which Henry III's half-siblings and a number of his administrators came, and was nep ...

archdeacon of Wells The Archdeacon of Wells has been a senior clergy position in the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells sin the English reformation, before which it was part of the Roman Catholic Church. The post, having oversight over the archdeaconry of We ...

and Keeper of the Royal Wardrobe. It was established as a house for canons following the

Rule of St Augustine The Rule of Saint Augustine, written about the year 400, is a brief document divided into eight chapters and serves as an outline for religious life lived in community. It is the oldest monastic rule in the Western Church. The rule, developed b ...

and dedicated to

St Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

. There are no known records of the number of canons at the priory at its foundation, and very little is known about the priory's history or architecture. The canons at the priory received 20

shillings The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence or ...

each as an annual income. The priory was dissolved on 17 February 1524, probably due to a decreased number of canons, as there were only two remaining at this point. The priory was dissolved by

Thomas Wolsey Thomas Wolsey ( – 29 November 1530) was an English statesman and Catholic bishop. When Henry VIII became King of England in 1509, Wolsey became the king's almoner. Wolsey's affairs prospered and by 1514 he had become the controlling figur ...

, who used the resulting funds to establish a college at Oxford University (now Christ Church College). It later came under the ownership of

Francis Bryan Sir Francis Bryan (about 1490 – 2 February 1550) was an English courtier and diplomat during the reign of Henry VIII of England, Henry VIII. He was Chief Gentleman of the Privy chamber and Lord Justices (Ireland), Lord Justice of Ireland. Unli ...

and, after him, Robert Throgmorton. A farmhouse was later built on the site of the priory, and known as the Abbey. The remains of the priory, moats and fishponds have been listed as a

Scheduled Ancient 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 and d ...

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

References

{{coord, 52.1487, -0.7589, display=title, region:GB_scale:5000 Monasteries in Buckinghamshire 1255 establishments in England Christian monasteries established in the 13th century 1524 disestablishments Scheduled monuments in Buckinghamshire