Langdon 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 of the Catholic Church ...

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...

near

West Langdon West Langdon is a village in the Dover (district), Dover district of Kent, England. It is located five miles north of Dover town. The population of the village is included in the civil parish of Langdon, Kent, Langdon. The name ''Langdon'' deri ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, founded in about 1192 and dissolved in 1535, reportedly the first religious house to be dissolved by

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

. The visible remains of the abbey are now confined to the extensive cellaring below the 16th-century house that occupies its site and small remains of a 17th-century ice house.

Foundation

Langdon Abbey was founded in about 1192 by William de Auberville (the elder) of

Westenhanger Stanford is a village and civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or ...

, Kent (son of Hugh de Auberville), with the assent of his wife Matilda (Maud), daughter of

Ranulf de Glanville Ranulf is a masculine given name in the English language. It is derived from the Old Norse name ''Reginúlfr''. This Old Norse personal name is composed of two elements: the first, ''regin'', means "advice", "decision" (and also "the gods"); the s ...

(who died at the

Siege of Acre Siege of Acre may refer to: * Siege of Acre (1104), following the First Crusade *Siege of Acre (1189–1191), during the Third Crusade * Siege of Acre (1263), Baibars laid siege to the Crusader city, but abandoned it to attack Nazareth. *Siege of A ...

in 1190),

Chief Justiciar Justiciar is the English form of the medieval Latin term ''justiciarius'' or ''justitiarius'' ("man of justice", i.e. judge). During the Middle Ages in England, the Chief Justiciar (later known simply as the Justiciar) was roughly equivalent ...

of England to King Henry II. William de Auberville was a knight in duty to Simon de Avranches. He was also a King's Justiciar, had assisted at the foundation of the Premonstratensian abbey of

Leiston Leiston ( ) is an English town in the East Suffolk non-metropolitan district of Suffolk, near Saxmundham and Aldeburgh, about from the North Sea coast, north-east of Ipswich and north-east of London. The town had a population of 5,508 at the ...

, Suffolk, by his father-in-law in 1182, and was a patron of Ranulf's religious foundation at

Butley Priory Butley Priory, sometimes called ''Butley Abbey'', was a religious house of Canons regular (Augustinians, Black canons) in Butley, Suffolk, dedicated to The Blessed Virgin Mary. It was founded in 1171 by Ranulf de Glanville (c. 1112-1190), Chief ...

, Suffolk, of 1171. Langdon Abbey was founded as a

daughter house A dependency, among monastic orders, denotes the relation of a monastic community with a newer community which it has founded elsewhere. The relationship is that of the founding abbey or conventual priory, termed the motherhouse, with a monastery ...

of Leiston Abbey, under the hand of Robert, abbot of Leiston, and was dedicated to the

Blessed Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...

and

St Thomas the Martyr ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

. Sir William annexed the church of St. Mary in

Walmer Walmer is a town in Dover District, the district of Dover, Kent, in England. Located on the coast, the parish of Walmer is south-east of Sandwich, Kent. Largely residential, its coastline and castle attract many visitors. It has a population of ...

to the abbey, in perpetual alms, and the church remained with the abbey until its dissolution. Patronage of Langdon descended to Nicholas de Crioll (the younger), son of William's great-granddaughter Joan de Auberville and her husband

Nicholas de Crioll Nicholas de Crioll (Cryoyll, Kerrial or Kyriel) (died c. February 1272), of a family seated in Kent, was Warden of the Cinque Ports, Constable of Dover Castle and Keeper of the Coast during the early 1260s. His kinsman Bertram de Criol (died 1256 ...

(the elder).

Royal favour

In 1325

Edward II Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to t ...

recuperated at the abbey, having been taken ill on the road to

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

. The Abbot and Convent of Langedon were granted a

licence to crenellate In medieval England, Wales and the Channel Islands a licence to crenellate (or licence to fortify) granted the holder permission to fortify his property. Such licences were granted by the king, and by the rulers of the counties palatine within the ...

in 1348. In 1491 it was reported that Langdon had 300 acres (121 hectares) of grain and a very good supply of animals.

Dissolution

In 1535 the abbey was reputedly the first religious house to be dissolved by

and had, at that time, an annual revenue estimated at £56. Dr. Leyton, the commissioner who carried out the visitation of the abbey, sent the following report to

Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

on his arrest of the abbot and his mistress:

Later history

The

fee simple In English law, a fee simple or fee simple absolute is an estate in land, a form of freehold ownership. A "fee" is a vested, inheritable, present possessory interest in land. A "fee simple" is real property held without limit of time (i.e., perm ...

('fief') of the manor was acquired by John Master, who died in 1588. His son, James Master (who died in 1631, aged 84) was described as "''Primo de Sandwich, postea de East Langden, ubi edificavit mansionem''". James Master's eldest son, Sir Edward Master, was

High Sheriff of Kent The high sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown (prior to 1974 the office previously known as sheriff)."Sheriffs appointed for a county or Greater London shall be known as high sheriffs, and any reference in any enactment or instrum ...

in 1639. The site of the abbey itself was occupied by a farmhouse, parts of which date back to the 16th century. The monks’ cellar (retaining its original arches) remains in place underneath the house. In 1828, it was reported that the farmhouse "has been occupied many years by a respectable family of the name of Coleman",''A Short Historical Sketch of the Town of Dover'' (6th edition, Dover, 1828), and the returns from the 1881 census show that one Richard Coleman remained a substantial farmer at Langdon as at that date.

Gallery

Image:LangdonAbbey1.jpg, Monastic cellars at Langdon Abbey

References

{{Authority control Premonstratensian monasteries in England Monasteries in Kent Dover District Christian monasteries established in the 12th century 1190s establishments in England Monasteries dissolved under the English Reformation