Pershore Abbey
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Pershore Pershore is a market town in the Wychavon district in Worcestershire, England, on the banks of the River Avon. The town is part of the West Worcestershire parliamentary constituency. At the 2011 census, the population was 7,125. The town is ...
in
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
, was an Anglo-Saxon
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 ...
and is now an
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...
, the Church of the Holy Cross.


History


Foundation

The foundation of the minster at Pershore is alluded to in a spurious charter of King
Æthelred of Mercia Æthelred (; died after 704) was king of Mercia from 675 until 704. He was the son of Penda of Mercia and came to the throne in 675, when his brother, Wulfhere of Mercia, died from an illness. Within a year of his accession he invaded Kent, wh ...
(r. 675–704). It purports to be the charter by which Æthelred granted 300 hides (about 36,000 acres) at Gloucester to King
Osric of the Hwicce Osric was a king of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the Hwicce in the late 7th century, perhaps reigning jointly with his presumed brother Oshere. Osric was probably a son of Eanhere, a previous King of the Hwicce, by Osthryth, daughter of Os ...
, and another 300 at Pershore to Osric's brother Oswald.Sims-Williams, ''Religion and literature'', pp. 94-6. It is preserved only as a copy in a 14th-century register of Gloucester, where it is followed by two charters listing the endowments made to the abbey until the reign of Link
Burgred of Mercia Burgred (also Burhred or Burghred) was an Anglo-Saxon king of Mercia from 852 to 874. Family Burgred became king of Mercia in 852, and may have been related to his predecessor Beorhtwulf. After Easter in 853, Burgred married Æthelswith, daug ...
(852-874).S 1782
/ref> The 300 hides mentioned here are unlikely to be a contemporary detail, as they were intended to represent the triple
hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to de ...
which later made up the area of Worcestershire. Historian
H. P. R. Finberg Herbert Patrick Reginald Finberg (1900–1974) was an English historian, typographer and publisher. After working at several publishing companies and founding his own (Alcuin Press), he joined the faculty of Leicester University in 1952. He became ...
suggests that the foundation charter may have been drafted in the 9th century, based on some authentic material. Oswald's foundation of a monastery at Pershore is not stated explicitly in the charter, but the Worcester chronicle ''
Cronica de Anglia The ''Nuova Cronica'' (also: ''Nova Cronica'') or ''Chronicle, New Chronicles'' is a 14th-century history of Florence created in a Annals, year-by-year linear format and written by the Italian Banking, banker and official Giovanni Villani (c. 1 ...
'', written ''c''. 1150, reports it under the annal for 683, and John Leland, consulting the now lost ''Annals of Pershore'', places the event around 689. Patrick Sims-Williams suggests that the foundation by Oswald may also represent an oral tradition at Pershore, as its archives were probably destroyed in fires of 1002 and again in 1223. In the 9th century, Pershore comes to light again as a minster under the patronage of
Mercian kings The Kingdom of Mercia was a state in the English Midlands from the 6th century to the 10th century. For some two hundred years from the mid-7th century onwards it was the dominant member of the Heptarchy and consequently the most powerful of the ...
. In other charters contained in the Gloucester register,
Coenwulf Coenwulf (; also spelled Cenwulf, Kenulf, or Kenwulph; la, Coenulfus) was the King of Mercia from December 796 until his death in 821. He was a descendant of King Pybba, who ruled Mercia in the early 7th century. He succeeded Ecgfrith, the son ...
(r. 796–821) and Burgred are recorded as having been patrons of Pershore. A charter of King Edgar refers back to a grant of privileges by Coenwulf at the request of his
ealdorman Ealdorman (, ) was a term in Anglo-Saxon England which originally applied to a man of high status, including some of royal birth, whose authority was independent of the king. It evolved in meaning and in the eighth century was sometimes applied ...
(''
dux ''Dux'' (; plural: ''ducēs'') is Latin for "leader" (from the noun ''dux, ducis'', "leader, general") and later for duke and its variant forms (doge, duce, etc.). During the Roman Republic and for the first centuries of the Roman Empire, '' ...
'') Beornnoth.S 786
/ref>


Refoundation

In the reign of King Edgar (959-975), Pershore reappears as one of the abbeys to be re-established (or restored) under the programme of
Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...
reform. Writing ''c''. 1000, the Ramsey monk
Byrhtferth Byrhtferth ( ang, Byrhtferð; ) was a priest and monk who lived at Ramsey Abbey in Huntingdonshire (now part of Cambridgeshire) in England. He had a deep impact on the intellectual life of later Anglo-Saxon England and wrote many computistic, h ...
relates that under the auspices of Oswald, bishop of Worcester, seven monasteries were founded in his diocese, notably including Pershore. The first abbot was one Foldbriht, whose name is sufficiently rare to suggest that he may be the same Foldbriht whom Bishop
Æthelwold Æthelwold was a common Anglo Saxon name. It may refer to: Royalty and nobility *King Æthelwold of Deira, King of Deira, d. 655 *King Æthelwold of East Anglia, King of East Anglia, d. 664 *King Æthelwold Moll of Northumbria, King of Northumbria ...
previously installed at Abingdon and used to be a monk of
Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury ...
before that time. The refoundation is what lies behind an exceptionally elaborate charter for Pershore, dated 972, in which King Edgar is presented as granting new lands and privileges as well as confirming old ones, such as the one granted by Coenwulf. The authenticity of this document, however, has been questioned.
Simon Keynes Simon Douglas Keynes, ( ; born 23 September 1952) is a British author who is Elrington and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon emeritus in the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic at Cambridge University, and a Fellow of Trinity Colleg ...
in 1980 showed that it belongs to the so-called ''Orthodoxorum'' group of charters, so named after the initial word of their
proem __NOTOC__ A preface () or proem () is an introduction to a book or other literary work written by the work's author. An introductory essay written by a different person is a ''foreword'' and precedes an author's preface. The preface often closes ...
, which he concluded were forgeries based on a charter of
Æthelred II Æthelred (; ang, Æþelræd ) or Ethelred () is an Old English personal name (a compound of ''wiktionary:æþele, æþele'' and ''wiktionary:ræd, ræd'', meaning "noble counsel" or "well-advised") and may refer to: Anglo-Saxon England * Æthel ...
's reign. Since then, Susan Kelly and John Hudson have vindicated the status of some of these charters, including the one for Pershore, which is written in square minuscule characteristic of some of Edgar's charters. More recently, Peter Stokes has brought to light a variant copy of the charter and suggests that two different versions may have been produced around the same time, somewhere between 972 and 1066. A possible scenario is that they were produced to make up for the loss of the original charter(s), perhaps shortly after the fire which is reported to have destroyed the abbey in ''c''. 1002 (see below).Stokes, "King Edgar's charter for Pershore, 972", pp. 72-3. The 12th-century historian
William of Malmesbury William of Malmesbury ( la, Willelmus Malmesbiriensis; ) was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. He has been ranked among the most talented English historians since Bede. Modern historian C. Warren Hollister described him as "a ...
, who seems unaware of any pre-existing minster, claims that one Æthelweard (''Egelwardus''), whom he describes as "ealdorman of Dorset", had founded the abbey of Pershore in the time of King Edgar.William of Malmesbury, ''Gesta pontificum'' IV, ch. 162, ed. and tr, Winterbottom and Thomson Similarly,
Osbert Osbert is a male given name and a surname. It may refer to: Osbert , a novel by R.A. Currier Given name *Osbert or Osberht of Northumbria (died 867), King of Northumbria *Osbert or Osbeorn Bulax (died c. 1054), son of Siward, Earl of Northumbr ...
's ''Life'' of
Eadburh of Winchester Eadburh (or Edburga) (born 921/924, died 15 June 951/953) was the daughter of King Edward the Elder of England and his third wife, Eadgifu of Kent. She lived most of her life as a nun known for her singing ability. Most of the information abo ...
alleges that one ''Alwardus'', who is styled ''comes'' and ''consul'', was responsible for the refoundation. Both authors also attribute to him a role in the translation of some of the saint's relics to Pershore. Osbert writes that an abbess of
Nunnaminster St. Mary's Abbey, also known as the ''Nunnaminster'', was a Benedictine nunnery in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded between 899 and 902 by Alfred the Great's widow Ealhswith, who was described as the 'builder' of the Nunnaminster in ...
had sold some relics to Æthelweard (''Alwardus''), who in turn handed them over for the refoundation of Pershore.Ridyard, ''The royal saints of Anglo-Saxon England'' Some scholars have identified him with Æthelweard, the well-known chronicler and ealdorman of the western shires.Williams, ''World before Domesday'', pp. 11-3. Whatever high-level patronage the foundation may have received, it was not enough to sustain its fortunes for very long. Precisely what happened to Pershore in the later 10th century is poorly documented, but some sources seem to hint that it went into decline during the succession crisis which emerged in the wake of King Edgar's death.Williams, "''Princeps Merciorum gentis''", pp. 167-8 William of Malmesbury says that "it, too, like the others, decayed to a pitiful extent, and was reduced by more than a half". According to Leland, the ''Annals of Pershore'' hold an earl called ''Delfer'' responsible for depriving the abbey of several of its lands. This ''Delfer'' has been interpreted as a misreading for Ælfhere (d. 983), ealdorman of Mercia (whom Leland mentions elsewhere)."Oswaldus ''primum instituit Canonicos seculares apud'' Persore. ''Postea fuit ibidem chorus monachorum''.''Rursus Canonici inducti''.''Postea monachi per'' Edgarum. Elferus ''abstulit prædia monachis''.Odda ''comes ejus filius restituit''.''Monasterium conflagravit & à monachis desertum est''.''Monachi'' Westmonasterienses ''prædia usurpabant''.Wada ''comes attulit reliqias S.'' Eadburgae, & ''per'' Oswaldum ''episcopum'' Fulbrightus ''abbas inductus''.''Olney'', alias ''Alney'', about ''Deorhirst'' in ''Glocester-shire. Deorhurst'' yet remainith in ''Glocestre-shire'' as a Celle to ''Twekesbiri''." John Leland, ''Itinerarium'', ed. Hearne, vol. 5, p. 2. While himself a patron of Ely and Abingdon, Ælfhere was also charged with despoiling reformed monasteries during
Edward the Martyr Edward ( ang, Eadweard, ; 18 March 978), often called the Martyr, was King of the English from 975 until he was murdered in 978. Edward was the eldest son of King Edgar, but was not his father's acknowledged heir. On Edgar's death, the leade ...
's brief reign (975-978). The targets included houses refounded by Bishop Oswald or Bishop Æthelwold and considerably enriched under the patronage of Æthelstan Half-King's sons, notably
Æthelwine, ealdorman of East Anglia Æthelwine (died 992) was ealdorman of East Anglia and one of the leading noblemen in the kingdom of England in the later 10th century. As with his kinsmen, the principal source for his life is Byrhtferth's life of Oswald of Worcester. Æthelwine ...
.
Evesham Abbey Evesham Abbey was founded by Saint Egwin at Evesham in Worcestershire, England between 700 and 710 following an alleged vision of the Virgin Mary by a swineherd by the name of Eof. According to the monastic history, Evesham came through the No ...
, for instance, as later reported by its own chronicle, also claimed to have lost several of its lands in this way, and
Winchcombe Winchcombe () is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Tewkesbury in the county of Gloucestershire, England, it is 6 miles north-east of Cheltenham. The population was recorded as 4,538 in the 2011 census and estimated at 5,347 in ...
was disbanded altogether. Æthelwine, in his turn, was remembered at Ely as a despoiler of its lands. Tensions between Ælfhere and Bishop Oswald, whose authorities overlapped, and between Ælfhere and Æthelwine, with whom Oswald maintained a close relationship, are therefore likely to have been the principal cause of the upheaval. Whether a liberty similar to that of
Oswaldslow The Oswaldslow (sometimes Oswaldslaw) was a hundred in the English county of Worcestershire, which was named in a supposed charter of 964 by King Edgar the Peaceful (died 975). It was actually a triple hundred, composed of three smaller hundreds.Mas ...
was an extra cause for concern, compromising Ælfhere's authority as ealdorman, cannot be ascertained from the sources.


"Second" refoundation

Pershore suffered worse misfortune when, according to Leland, it was destroyed by fire and subsequently deserted by the monks, probably in the year 1002.Williams, "Odda, earl (''d''. 1056)" The monastic archives were largely lost in the event, as no original record from before that date survives today. Pershore, however, found a generous patron in the wealthy nobleman
Odda of Deerhurst Odda of Deerhurst (before 993 – 31 August 1056) was an Anglo-Saxon nobleman active in the period from 1013 onwards. He became a leading magnate in 1051, following the exile of Godwin, Earl of Wessex and his sons and the confiscation of t ...
(d. 1056), who restored many of its lands and granted new ones. It has been suggested that he was a kinsman of the ealdorman Æthelweard. The earliest extant record from the archive of Pershore, a charter of 1014 by which King Æthelred granted Mathon (Herefordshire) to ealdorman Leofwine, may testify to Odda's restorations of lands to the house. The monastery was active again by the 1020s, as its abbot Brihtheah was promoted bishop of Worcester in 1033. Odda's brother Ælfric was buried at Pershore in 1053, joined three years later by Odda himself. In Odda's lifetime the total landed assets of Pershore grew to 300 hides, but after the loss of its benefactor in 1056 about two-thirds were seized and given to
Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066. Edward was the son of Æth ...
's new foundation at Westminster. The original single sheet which preserves the fullest version of King Edgar's refoundation charter (though it need not be authentic) is marked by a number of textual alterations and erasures. Some of these changes may suggest a response to the abbey's proprietary struggles. From the early 12th century there is evidence that Pershore Abbey claimed possession of some of the relics of Saint
Eadburh of Winchester Eadburh (or Edburga) (born 921/924, died 15 June 951/953) was the daughter of King Edward the Elder of England and his third wife, Eadgifu of Kent. She lived most of her life as a nun known for her singing ability. Most of the information abo ...
, the
saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...
ed daughter of King
Edward the Elder Edward the Elder (17 July 924) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 899 until his death in 924. He was the elder son of Alfred the Great and his wife Ealhswith. When Edward succeeded to the throne, he had to defeat a challenge from his cousin Æt ...
. Her body was initially buried at
Nunnaminster St. Mary's Abbey, also known as the ''Nunnaminster'', was a Benedictine nunnery in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded between 899 and 902 by Alfred the Great's widow Ealhswith, who was described as the 'builder' of the Nunnaminster in ...
(Winchester), but it was translated in the 960s to a more central spot in
Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...
, and again to a shrine in the 970s. Among several possibilities, Susan Ridyard has suggested that the Eadburh whose relics were preserved at Pershore may have been a Mercian saint of that name whose identity had become obscure.


Later Middle Ages

The main building was begun in about 1100. In the fourteenth century it benefited greatly from the generosity of Adam de Harvington,
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
1327–30, who was a cousin, and eventually the heir, of the Abbot, William of Harvington. The abbey was dissolved in 1539. A monk of Pershore, named Richard Beerly, was one of those who gave evidence to
Thomas Cromwell Thomas Cromwell (; 1485 – 28 July 1540), briefly Earl of Essex, was an English lawyer and statesman who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII from 1534 to 1540, when he was beheaded on orders of the king, who later blamed false charge ...
in 1536 about the misbehaviour of some of his brothers, writing that "Monckes drynk an bowll after collacyon tell ten or xii of the clock, and cum to mattens as dronck as myss, and sume at cardes, sume at dyss." (Monks drink a bowl after
collation Collation is the assembly of written information into a standard order. Many systems of collation are based on numerical order or alphabetical order, or extensions and combinations thereof. Collation is a fundamental element of most office fili ...
until ten or twelve o'clock, and come to
Matins Matins (also Mattins) is a canonical hour in Christian liturgy, originally sung during the darkness of early morning. The earliest use of the term was in reference to the canonical hour, also called the vigil, which was originally celebrated by ...
as drunk as mice, some layingat cards, some at dice.)Pershore Abbey church was partly demolished after the reformation when it was surrendered to the King's Commissioners in 1540; only the tower, choir, and south transept remain. The abbey church remained in use as a
parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...
. When the north
transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...
collapsed in 1686, a wall was built in its place. Further alterations were carried out, including a
restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...
by
George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he started ...
in 1862–64. His work included the removal of the belfry floor and the opening up of the
lantern tower In architecture, the lantern tower is a tall construction above the junction of the four arms of a cruciform (cross-shaped) church, with openings through which light from outside can shine down to the crossing (so it also called a crossing lante ...
to expose the beautiful internal tracery panelling. Scott described the lantern as the finest in the country after that of
Lincoln Cathedral Lincoln Cathedral, Lincoln Minster, or the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln and sometimes St Mary's Cathedral, in Lincoln, England, is a Grade I listed cathedral and is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Lincoln. Constructio ...
. The tower pinnacles were added in 1871.Wilson, Dr. M. and Crawford, Rev. K., ''Pershore Abbey'', Official Abbey Guide, 2008, , pp.11-13 In 1913, two western
flying buttress The flying buttress (''arc-boutant'', arch buttress) is a specific form of buttress composed of an arch that extends from the upper portion of a wall to a pier of great mass, in order to convey lateral forces to the ground that are necessary to pu ...
es were added to replace the support from the missing portion of the building.


Current structure and features

The church as it now stands represents only a small portion of the original building. It is a Grade I
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. Major repairs were undertaken in 1994, to stabilise the south transept with a ring beam and to strengthen its roof and to repoint the tower and pinnacles. An underfloor heating system was installed.


Bells

Pershore Abbey has a ring of eight bells, of which six were cast by the younger Abraham Rudhall in 1729. The treble was cast in 1814 by Thomas Mears of the
Whitechapel Bell Foundry The Whitechapel Bell Foundry was a business in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. At the time of the closure of its Whitechapel premises, it was the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain. The bell foundry primarily made church bells a ...
. The cracked 4th (also 1729 by Rudhall) was recast by J. Barwell & Sons of Birmingham with "moderate success" in 1897, the same year they were rehung. The largest bell (the tenor) is estimated to weigh 25½ cwt (2856 lbs.) and sounds the note D. The ringing room, devised as part of Gilbert Scott's 1862-64 restorations, is a metal 'cage' suspended high above the chancel crossing; it is accessed by means of two stone spiral staircases, a walkway through the roof, a squeeze through a narrow passage and a see-through iron staircase. The bells have the following inscriptions (in capital letters). :1. (Treble) "Joseph Martin and Thomas Evans churchwardens 1814" :2. "Peace and good neighbourhood" :3. "Abr Rudhall of Gloucester cast all of us" :4. "Barwell Founder Birmingham. Prosperity to the Church of England 1729 Recast 1897" :5. "Prosperity to all our benefactors A R 1729" :6. "Walter Marriott and Edmund Gale churchwardens A R 1729" :7. "Richard Roberts Esq John Yeend and Thomas Ashfield Gent eme trustees A R 1729" :8. (Tenor) "I to the Church the living call: And to the grave do summon all"


Font

In about 1840 the abbey was given a new
baptismal font A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism. Aspersion and affusion fonts The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). ...
and the original
Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...
font was cast out into the churchyard. It was later used as a
cattle trough __NOTOC__ A manger or trough is a rack for fodder, or a structure or feeder used to hold food for animals. The word comes from the Old French ''mangier'' (meaning "to eat"), from Latin ''mandere'' (meaning "to chew"). Mangers are mostly used in ...
, and later used in a garden at nearby Kempsey. In 1912 a
war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...
was erected on the site of the Victorian font and the old font was returned, on a pedestal designed by
Harold Brakspear Sir Harold Brakspear KCVO (10 March 1870 – 20 November 1934) was an English restoration architect and archaeologist. He restored a number of ancient and notable buildings, including Bath Abbey, Windsor Castle, Brownston House in Devizes and ...
. The font is decorated with an interlacing
arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware ** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board * Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games * ...
, in the panels of which are the figures of
Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...
and his Apostles.


Abbots


Organ

A three manual organ built by Nicholson of
Malvern Malvern or Malverne may refer to: Places Australia * Malvern, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide * Malvern, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne * City of Malvern, a former local government area near Melbourne * Electoral district of Malvern, an e ...
in 1872, was removed and replaced with a Bradford electronic organ. The Nicholson was restored twice by J. W. Walker & Sons Ltd, in 1940 and 1971. A new pipe organ, costing around £850,000, has been commissioned from the Fratelli Ruffatti workshop in Italy. Past organists and masters of music include Charles Tovey, Edred Martin Chaundy (1898–1899, formerly of Enniskillen Parish Church, afterwards Holy Trinity Church, Stroud and Armagh Cathedral), Frank Alfred Charles Mason (1900–''c''.1921) Peter B. Waddington. ca. 1948, Rodney Clifford Baldwyn (1951–1981), Ian Gerrard (1993–2003), Sheila Joynes (2003–2004), Mike Pegg (2004–2005), David Barclay (2005–2007) and Alex Crawford (2007–2008). In 2009, Mike Pegg resumed his former duties.


Grounds

The buried foundations of the other monastic buildings, which lie to the southwest of the church, were identified in an archaeological excavation in 1929. At the Dissolution, these buildings and the abbey grounds were acquired by John Richardson. The buildings were demolished and the grounds passed through various owners. Abbey House was later built on the site, sometime in the 1830s. In 1910 its owner, Henry Wise, donated the house to the
Anglican Benedictine There are a number of Benedictine Anglican religious orders, some of them using the name Order of St. Benedict (OSB). Just like their Roman Catholic counterparts, each abbey/priory/convent is independent of each other. The vows are not made to ...
monks of
Caldey Abbey Caldey Abbey is an abbey of the Trappists situated on Caldey Island off the coast of Pembrokeshire, Wales, south of Tenby. Caldey Island has been known as one of the centres of Cistercian activity since Celts, Celtic times and thrived during medi ...
, Pembrokeshire. When these monks converted to Roman Catholicism in 1913, they returned Abbey House to Wise who then provided it for the use of the small remnant of monks from Caldey who had remained Anglican. In 1922 the monks bought the house. They left Pershore for
Nashdom Abbey Nashdom, also known as Nashdom Abbey, is a former country house and former Anglican Benedictine abbey in Burnham, Buckinghamshire, England. Designed in Neo-Georgian style by architect Edwin Lutyens, it is a Grade II* listed building. It was c ...
, Buckinghamshire, in 1926, but only sold Abbey House in 1947 when it was demolished and the grounds became housing and parkland.Dunstan (2009), p. 69.


See also

*
List of English abbeys, priories and friaries serving as parish churches A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby union ...


Gallery

File:Pershore Abbey from the west.jpg, Pershore Abbey from the west File:Pershore Abbey in winter sun.jpg, Western path to Pershore Abbey File:Pershore Abbey NE window.jpg, North aisle, NE window, by Franz Mayer & Co., 1898 File:Pershore Abbey Sculpure - geograph.org.uk - 489424.jpg, Abbey sculpture in the grounds File:South transept, Pershore Abbey - geograph.org.uk - 1057546.jpg, South transept


Notes


Citations


References


Secondary sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Primary sources

* Anglo-Saxon charters: S 70, 209, 1782, 786; S 1143, S 1144, S 1145, S 1146. *
Byrhtferth Byrhtferth ( ang, Byrhtferð; ) was a priest and monk who lived at Ramsey Abbey in Huntingdonshire (now part of Cambridgeshire) in England. He had a deep impact on the intellectual life of later Anglo-Saxon England and wrote many computistic, h ...
, ''Life of St Oswald'', ed. * John Leland, ''Collectanea'', ed. * John Leland, ''Itinerarium'', ed. *
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
: Great Domesday, f. 174v–175r *
William of Malmesbury William of Malmesbury ( la, Willelmus Malmesbiriensis; ) was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. He has been ranked among the most talented English historians since Bede. Modern historian C. Warren Hollister described him as "a ...
, '' Gesta pontificum Anglorum'', ed. and tr.


External links


Pershore Abbey website

Pershore Abbey images
{{Authority control 7th-century establishments in England 680s establishments Anglo-Saxon monastic houses Christian monasteries established in the 7th century Church of England church buildings in Worcestershire Monasteries in Worcestershire Benedictine monasteries in England Tourist attractions in Worcestershire 1539 disestablishments in England Lists of abbots Grade I listed churches in Worcestershire Monasteries dissolved under the English Reformation Pershore 7th-century church buildings in England