Steventon Oxon Geograph-2613231-by-Bill-Nicholls

Priory Cottages (formerly Steventon Priory) is a 14th-century

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

and former

monastic grange Monastic granges were outlying landholdings held by monasteries independent of the manorial system. The first granges were owned by the Cistercians and other orders followed. Wealthy monastic houses had many granges, most of which were largely ...

which had the status of a priory at Steventon in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of Oxfordshire (formerly Berkshire). King Henry I gave the manor of Steventon to the priory of Notre-Dame de Bonne-Nouvelle in Rouen, a cell of the

Abbey of Bec 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 Christians, Christian monks and nuns ...

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

. It therefore became a cell of Bec and was given the status of a

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of ...

. However, a priory church and associated buildings were never built there. It always remained just a

, the building now called Priory Cottages, served by one or two monks. By the late 14th century, it was leased out to tenants. Later it belonged to

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

. The building is constructed around a central courtyard and its mighty hammer-beam is of architectural interest. It is also said to have a priest’s bolthole in the chimney. In 1939 the cottages were endowed to the National Trust by a group of women philanthropists called Ferguson’s Gang. Ferguson’s Gang kept their identities secret and attracted publicity for the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

by delivering funds in spectacular ways. In July 1939 they invaded the National Trust’s AGM with what was reported to be ‘A Benificent Bomb’ but which was in fact a metal pineapple containing £100, which was their second down-payment for Priory Cottages. The five women of Ferguson’s Gang intended to use the cottages as their own living space but their plans were thwarted by the start of World War II, and the cottages are now tenanted privately. The public can visit the cottages by written appointment with the tenant.

References

{{coord, 51.618896, -1.32823, region:GB_type:landmark_scale:2000_source:wikimapia, name=Steventon Priory, display=title Steventon Steventon Houses in Oxfordshire Country houses in Oxfordshire National Trust properties in Oxfordshire