The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay
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Sutton Courtenay Sutton Courtenay is a village and civil parish on the River Thames south of Abingdon-on-Thames and northwest of Didcot. Historically part of Berkshire, it has been administered as part of Oxfordshire since the 1974 boundary changes. The 201 ...
is a
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
courtyard house A courtyard house is a type of house—often a large house—where the main part of the building is disposed around a central courtyard. Many houses that have courtyards are not courtyard houses of the type covered by this article. For example, l ...
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 Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
(formerly
Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
). It is located in the
Vale of White Horse The Vale of White Horse is a local government district of Oxfordshire in England. It was historically a north-west projection of Berkshire. The area is commonly referred to as the 'Vale of ''the'' White Horse'. It is crossed by the Ridgeway Nat ...
near the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...
, across the road from the twelfth-century
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 ...
Hall and the
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 ...
. The Abbey has been recognised as a building of outstanding historic and
architectural Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings o ...
interest and is considered to be a ‘textbook’ example of an English medieval
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 ...
. It has been a Grade I-listed building since 1952. The Abbey has its origins in the thirteenth century as a
rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically ow ...
of
Abingdon Abbey Abingdon Abbey ( '' " St Mary's Abbey " '' ) was a Benedictine monastery located in the centre of Abingdon-on-Thames beside the River Thames. The abbey was founded c.675 AD in honour of The Virgin Mary. The Domesday Book of 1086 informs ...
, a
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 ...
monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
up north in
Abingdon-on-Thames Abingdon-on-Thames ( ), commonly known as Abingdon, is a historic market town and civil parish in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Oxfordshire, England, on the River Thames. Historic counties of England, Historically the ...
. Several construction phases took place during the Middle Ages, carried out by prominent figures like Solomon of Rochester,
Thomas Beckington Thomas Beckington (also spelt Beckynton; c. 139014 January 1465) was the Bishop of Bath and Wells and King's Secretary in medieval England under Henry VI. Life Beckington was born at Beckington in Somerset, and was educated at Winchester ...
and William Say, but it wasn't until the seventeenth century that the current plan was completed. It was probably during the
Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
that the house obtained the name 'The Abbey'. From 1495 to 1867, The Abbey was in possession of
St George's Chapel St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in England is a castle chapel built in the late-medieval Perpendicular Gothic style. It is both a Royal Peculiar (a church under the direct jurisdiction of the monarch) and the Chapel of the Order of the Gart ...
at
Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original cast ...
, who leased the estate among others to John Fettiplace. After being inhabited by Eve Fleming, the estate was bought by
David Astor Francis David Langhorne Astor, CH (5 March 1912 – 7 December 2001) was an English newspaper publisher, editor of ''The Observer'' at the height of its circulation and influence, and member of the Astor family, "the landlords of New York". Ea ...
in 1958, who leased it to the
Ockenden Venture Ockenden International is an English international development non-governmental organisation that helps displaced persons become self-sufficient. They work in Afghanistan, Cambodia, Iran, Lebanon, Pakistan, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda. History ...
which offered sanctuary to refugees and displaced children. In the 70s, The Abbey was lent to the exiled Bishop
Colin Winter Colin O'Brien Winter (10 October 1928 – 17 November 1981), was an English Anglicanism, Anglican bishop, who served as Bishop of Damaraland, a diocese of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa (now the Anglican Church of Southern Africa) ...
to house the
Namibia International Peace Centre The Namibia International Peace Centre was a non-governmental organization which was active between 1974 and 1981. It was based in The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay and later in Bethnal Green, East London. It was established by Bishop Colin Winter (192 ...
. In 1978, the
Astor family The Astor family achieved prominence in business, society, and politics in the United States and the United Kingdom during the 19th and 20th centuries. With ancestral roots in the Italian Alps region of Italy by way of Germany, the Astors settle ...
sold the house and in 1980 it came into possession of The New Era Centre, a
non-profit charity A foundation (also a charitable foundation) is a category of nonprofit organization or charitable trust that typically provides funding and support for other charitable organizations through grants, but may also engage directly in charitable act ...
led by Dr. Fred Blum and Bishop Stephen Verney. The New Era Centre used The Abbey as a
spiritual retreat The meaning of a spiritual retreat can be different for different religious communities. Spiritual retreats are an integral part of many Hindu, Jewish, Buddhist, Christian and Sufi communities. In Hinduism and Buddhism, meditative retreats are ...
and conference centre, and changed its name to The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay in the 1990s. The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay is a "residential centre in which a spiritual community offers hospitality to people" who are seeking spiritual refreshment,
personal growth Personal development or self improvement consists of activities that develop a person's capabilities and potential, build human capital, facilitate employability, and enhance quality of life and the realization of dreams and aspirations. Personal ...
and
healing With physical trauma or disease suffered by an organism, healing involves the repairing of damaged tissue(s), organs and the biological system as a whole and resumption of (normal) functioning. Medicine includes the process by which the cells i ...
. The Abbey also organises public events concerning spirituality, personal development, education, music and the arts.


Buildings

The Abbey forms a quadrangle with an inner
courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary ...
. It has 28 rooms and a
great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages, and continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great ...
. The two-storey building has clay roof tiles on a structure made with stone and timber. Originally, it had a thatched roof. Four ranges are arranged around the central courtyard. The oldest surviving parts of The Abbey are the north and west ranges, the frames of which were originally from wood, parts of which were later encased in stone in order to stabilise the structure. Originally, The Abbey's main entrance to was through a rear door of the passage separating the service wing from the great hall. Nowadays, the main entrance is on the east side with a
Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
arch, a 1980s insertion replacing a narrow door, leading to the courtyard. The earliest documentations of the site are from the nineteenth century.
Edward Blore Edward Blore (13 September 1787 – 4 September 1879) was a 19th-century English landscape and architectural artist, architect and antiquary. Early career He was born in Derby, the son of the antiquarian writer Thomas Blore. Blore's backg ...
made sketches of the interior of the hall and of the house as seen from the northwest, which served as the basis of the engravings published by John Henry Parker in 1853. Parker also published a plan of the building. Peter Spencer Spokes and John M. Fletcher published a partial measure survey of the hall roof, and it was F.W.B. Charles who showed that the central
truss A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure. In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so that the assembl ...
of the hall must be base-
cruck A cruck or crook frame is a curved timber, one of a pair, which support the roof of a building, historically used in England and Wales. This type of timber framing consists of long, generally naturally curved, timber members that lean inwards and ...
. However, most of these nineteenth-century accounts show inaccuracies. Nowadays, there is also a guest house which is used for customers, conference guests and visitors. It is adjacent to the main house and it has its own kitchen with a dining area. In total, the guest house has nine rooms, of which five are twin rooms and four single. File:The Abbey Sutton Courtenay 2.jpg, West range File:The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay23.jpg, North range File:The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay21.jpg, East range File:The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay19.jpg, South range


West range

The
service wing Servants' quarters are those parts of a building, traditionally in a private house, which contain the domestic offices and staff accommodation. From the late 17th century until the early 20th century, they were a common feature in many large ...
is located at the southwest corner of the building, the southern part of its west range, and was built in the late thirteenth century. The wing is largely timber-framed. On the ground floor in the southwest end, the wing seems to incorporate a stone wall of an earlier structure, in which lateral chimney stacks have been built with fireplaces dating from the nineteenth century. The plastered stone wall on the west side, which is of timber above the first floor, was an underbuilding for an overhang. This wall consists of large
ashlar Ashlar () is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that has been worked until squared, or a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruv ...
blocks suggesting that that was done between the fifteenth and seventeenth century and it had a three-light
Perpendicular In elementary geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if they intersect at a right angle (90 degrees or π/2 radians). The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the ''perpendicular symbol'', ⟂. It can ...
window. Its timber-framed north wall also supports the framework of the great hall situated north of the service wing. The south wall of the great hall and north wall of the service wing are connected on the first floor, but not on the ground floor, creating a covered passage which originally served as The Abbey's main entrance. The
dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the usable space ...
roof between the truss of the great hall and the service wing is done in a thirteenth-century technique. The roof of the service wing itself, however, is post-medieval. Today, the service wing houses accommodation and a meditation room. The great hall was originally timber-framed and integrated with the contemporary service wing. It was cased in stone between 1320 and 1340 to prevent deforming of the base crucks under
shear stress Shear stress, often denoted by (Greek: tau), is the component of stress coplanar with a material cross section. It arises from the shear force, the component of force vector parallel to the material cross section. ''Normal stress'', on the ot ...
. The hall has two equal
bays A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a narr ...
and the four two-light windows have been replaced in the twentieth century by three-light Perpendicular windows. The stonework of the northeastern doorway was largely renewed in the nineteenth century. It has wave-moulded
jamb A jamb (from French ''jambe'', "leg"), in architecture, is the side-post or lining of a doorway or other aperture. The jambs of a window outside the frame are called “reveals.” Small shafts to doors and windows with caps and bases are know ...
s,
voussoir A voussoir () is a wedge-shaped element, typically a stone, which is used in building an arch or vault. Although each unit in an arch or vault is a voussoir, two units are of distinct functional importance: the keystone and the springer. The ...
s and an
ogee An ogee ( ) is the name given to objects, elements, and curves—often seen in architecture and building trades—that have been variously described as serpentine-, extended S-, or sigmoid-shaped. Ogees consist of a "double curve", the combinatio ...
-scroll
hood mould In architecture, a hood mould, hood, label mould (from Latin ''labia'', lip), drip mould or dripstone, is an external moulded projection from a wall over an opening to throw off rainwater, historically often in form of a ''pediment''. This mouldin ...
. The original southern doorway was less important and similar in style, but with
chamfer A chamfer or is a transitional edge between two faces of an object. Sometimes defined as a form of bevel, it is often created at a 45° angle between two adjoining right-angled faces. Chamfers are frequently used in machining, carpentry, fu ...
ed jambs. The northern end of the east wall abuts the north range with a straight joint, while the joint of the north range with the west wall is obscured by plaster. The doorway in the east wall has been rebuilt in brick. The west wall of the hall is
castellated A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...
and probably early nineteenth century. The great hall survives open to the roof, with one cruck truss carrying a
king post A king post (or king-post or kingpost) is a central vertical post used in architectural or bridge designs, working in tension to support a beam below from a truss apex above (whereas a crown post, though visually similar, supports items above fro ...
which is unique in that a ceiling has never hidden it. The workmanship of the timber structure is of exceptional quality. The main timbers are made from very large trees carefully sawn to avoid waney edges. All four posts have been made from the same tree. The structure has nineteenth- and twentieth-century renovations. The great wall has a wooden floor and can accommodate up to sixty people seated.


North range

In the courtyard between the north and west range is a timber-framed staircase outshut, dating from before the stone casing of the early fourteenth century. The stair is modern and leads to a door on the first floor of the north range. The outshut roof was probably repaired in the seventeenth century with an inserted
purlin A purlin (or historically purline, purloyne, purling, perling) is a longitudinal, horizontal, structural member in a roof. In traditional timber framing there are three basic types of purlin: purlin plate, principal purlin, and common purlin. Pu ...
. The northern range is roofed in six bays. The western three bays were originally also built in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, while the eastern three bays of the northern range have timber work in the roof that indicates a fifteenth-century date. The finish of the timbers of the three western bays in the north range is of inferior quality to that of the hall. On the ground floor was a
parlour A parlour (or parlor) is a reception room or public space. In medieval Christian Europe, the "outer parlour" was the room where the monks or nuns conducted business with those outside the monastery and the "inner parlour" was used for necessar ...
now used as a dining room, located under the two most western bays. The walls of this parlour vary in size. The west wall contains a three-light Perpendicular window, the north wall contains three two-light ones. The present fireplace is modern but there must have been a chimney since the fifteenth century. East of the parlour, the floor level rises and there is a cross passage. The door at the north end of the passage became blocked and was reopened only in the 1980s. East to the passage, under the third bay from the west, is a lodged floor. Originally, this bay was divided in a room to the north and a narrow room or corridor to the south. The first floor of these western three bays originally served as a great chamber, the second most important room in a medieval English manor house. This chamber was entered through a door from the staircase outshut. It is dominated by two fourteenth-century two-light
transom Transom may refer to: * Transom (architecture), a bar of wood or stone across the top of a door or window, or the window above such a bar * Transom (nautical), that part of the stern of a vessel where the two sides of its hull meet * Operation Tran ...
windows in the west
gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...
and in the north wall. The reveals of a third window also remain in the north wall. The present fireplace has
musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...
corbel In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal jutting from a wall to carry a superincumbent weight, a type of bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in the wall, whereas a console is a piece applied to the s ...
s from the fifteenth century. The roof structure was similar to the open roof of the great hall until probably the seventeenth century, when the room was separated into two rooms, with a corridor on the south side of the eastern room. These rooms now serve as the library and dining room respectively. On the ground floor of the three eastern bays, the third bay from the east was probably open to the roof and is nowadays part of the same room with the third bay from the west (the room east of the parlour). It has a small
lancet window A lancet window is a tall, narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural element are typical of Gothic church edifices of the earliest period. Lancet wi ...
in the northern wall at the base of the chimney. The two easternmost bays formed one room and has a modern partition from a corridor to the south. The north and east walls are both from stone, and at the east end of the northern wall is a blocked window. The other two windows are modern. An overhang projected northwards to the room. The present timber south wall replaced a stone wall, remains of which were found during
plumbing Plumbing is any system that conveys fluids for a wide range of applications. Plumbing uses pipes, valves, plumbing fixtures, tanks, and other apparatuses to convey fluids. Heating and cooling (HVAC), waste removal, and potable water delivery ...
operations in 1987–8. On the first floor there was a solar in the second and third bay from the east which was to the west divided from the dining room by a timber-framed partition. On the north side, there are two nineteenth- or twentieth-century Gothic windows flanking a large chimney with a fireplace. There may have been a partition in the middle of the room before the fireplace was built. The solar has a partition to the east behind which was a
chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
and a door from the north to the east range.


East range

Today, the east range holds the entrance archway. It was constructed around 1500 and contains three bays. The modern gatehouse, at the northern end of the east range, has a lancet window in its east wall. It has a jettied wooden frame upper part standing on stone walls. South of the archway, the wall was timber framed but later partially infilled with brick and rubble as far as the chimney, where it joins the south range. This timber framed wall is on a different alignment than the gatehouse, probably to unite with the south wall of the southeastern block, which originally may have been part of a wall around the courtyard before being incorporated into the building. The roof of the southern bay of the east range was black-smokened and may have served as a kitchen or
brewhouse A brewhouse is a building made for brewing beer and ale. This could be a part of a specialized brewery operation, but historically a brewhouse is a private building only meant for domestic production. Larger households, such as noble estates, o ...
at some time into which a chimney was later inserted.


South range

The western part of the south range extends the service wing and was added during the mid-sixteenth century. The two storey structure was open to the eaves and was once used for the kitchen. The adjoining southeast corner block appears to have been roofed, probably in the seventeenth century, to connect the east range with the south range. The construction of this block completed the courtyard plan. Nowadays, the south range serves as the administration office of The Abbey. The southeast corner block contains a meeting room called 'The Hearth', seating up to eighteen people.


Grounds

In 1804, Francis Justice, who was in possession of the estate at the time, was allotted over two acres on the green north of the house. As a result of this enlargement of the
curtilage In common law, the curtilage of a house or dwelling is the land immediately surrounding it, including any closely associated buildings and structures, but excluding any associated " open fields beyond". In feudal times every castle with its depen ...
, The Abbey now stands in the midst of extensive grounds and is approached by a
lime tree ''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Britain and Ireland they ...
avenue Avenue or Avenues may refer to: Roads * Avenue (landscape), traditionally a straight path or road with a line of trees, in the shifted sense a tree line itself, or some of boulevards (also without trees) * Avenue Road, Bangalore * Avenue Road, ...
across the enclosure allotment, leading near to the east of the house. Although the avenue across the grounds appears to have existed before the enclosure (some trees are older than 1804) the house stood on the eastern edge of its curtilage until 1798. The old boundary wall survives, only circa two meters beyond the east wall of the house. The
perimeter A perimeter is a closed path that encompasses, surrounds, or outlines either a two dimensional shape or a one-dimensional length. The perimeter of a circle or an ellipse is called its circumference. Calculating the perimeter has several pract ...
is indicated by old stone walls, wooden fencing and dead hedging. Some four and a half acres of the land are used as gardens. On the north lawn, there is a
plane tree ''Platanus'' is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae. All mature members of ''Platanus'' are tall, reaching in height. All except f ...
surrounded by
daffodils ''Narcissus'' is a genus of predominantly spring flowering perennial plant, perennial plants of the amaryllis family, Amaryllidaceae. Various common names including daffodil,The word "daffodil" is also applied to related genera such as ''Ste ...
. Here grow
ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...
,
beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...
,
bramble A bramble is any rough, tangled, prickly shrub, usually in the genus ''Rubus'', which grows blackberries, raspberries, or dewberries. "Bramble" is also used to describe other prickly shrubs, such as roses (''Rosa'' species). The fruits inclu ...
, various
conifers Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All extan ...
,
field maple ''Acer campestre'', known as the field maple, is a flowering plant species in the family Sapindaceae. It is native to much of continental Europe, Britain, southwest Asia from Turkey to the Caucasus, and north Africa in the Atlas Mountains. It has ...
,
ivy ''Hedera'', commonly called ivy (plural ivies), is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to western, central and southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern Africa and ...
,
oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...
,
rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...
s and
sycamore Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the ancient Greek ' (''sūkomoros'') meaning "fig-mulberry". Species of trees known as sycamore: * ''Acer pseudoplata ...
trees. There are also
laurels ''Laurus nobilis'' is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub with green, Glossary of botanical terms#glabrous, glabrous (smooth) leaves. It is in the flowering plant family Lauraceae. It is native to the Mediterranean region and is used as ...
, winter-flowering ''
Viburnum ''Viburnum'' is a genus of about 150–175 species of flowering plants in the moschatel family Adoxaceae. Its current classification is based on molecular phylogeny. It was previously included in the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae. The membe ...
'',
snowberry ''Symphoricarpos'', commonly known as the snowberry, waxberry, or ghostberry, is a small genus of about 15 species of deciduous shrubs in the honeysuckle family, Caprifoliaceae. With the exception of the Chinese coralberry, '' S. sinensis'', whi ...
, a young
Japanese cherry ''Prunus serrulata'' or Japanese cherry is a species of cherry tree that grows naturally in Japan, China, and Korea, and it also refers to a cultivar produced from ''Prunus speciosa'' (Oshima cherry), a cherry tree endemic in Japan.Toshio Katsu ...
and
maple ''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since http ...
. A trunk and several branches from an old copper beech serve as a place for
fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...
and
lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.London planetree London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...
. The south lawn has a
labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the ...
in it, where the
maypole A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, around which a maypole dance often takes place. The festivals may occur on 1 May or Pentecost (Whitsun), although in some countries it is instead erected at ...
is erected. This lawn as young
redwood Sequoioideae, popularly known as redwoods, is a subfamily of coniferous trees within the family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affini ...
and several varieties of
apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...
and
plum A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes. History Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found i ...
trees. Furthermore, The Abbey has mature
live oak Live oak or evergreen oak is any of a number of oaks in several different sections of the genus ''Quercus'' that share the characteristic of evergreen foliage. These oaks are not more closely related to each other than they are to other oaks. ...
, yew, wild cherry,
bird cherry Bird cherry is a common name for the European plant '' Prunus padus''. Bird cherry may also refer to: * ''Prunus'' subg. ''Padus'', a group of species closely related to ''Prunus padus'' * ''Prunus avium'', the cultivated cherry, with the Latin e ...
,
mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of diverse species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 identif ...
and a
cedar of Lebanon ''Cedrus libani'', the cedar of Lebanon or Lebanese cedar (), is a species of tree in the genus cedrus, a part of the pine family, native to the mountains of the Eastern Mediterranean basin. It is a large evergreen conifer that has great religi ...
. In 1991, a project was completed which took care of the trees and
transplanted ''A.N.T. Farm'' is a Disney Channel original series that follows Chyna Parks (China Anne McClain) and her two best friends, Olive Doyle (Sierra McCormick) and Fletcher Quimby (Jake Short), who are in the "Advanced Natural Talents" (A.N.T.) program ...
various species around the grounds. Adjacent to the grounds, there is a small secluded
orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of larg ...
where honey is produced from The Abbey's own
mason Mason may refer to: Occupations * Mason, brick mason, or bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork, or who lays any combination of stones, bricks, cinder blocks, or similar pieces * Stone mason, a craftsman in the stone-cut ...
and
honey bee A honey bee (also spelled honeybee) is a eusocial flying insect within the genus ''Apis'' of the bee clade, all native to Afro-Eurasia. After bees spread naturally throughout Africa and Eurasia, humans became responsible for the current co ...
s. The guest house area contains apple, elder, ivy,
spindle Spindle may refer to: Textiles and manufacturing * Spindle (textiles), a straight spike to spin fibers into yarn * Spindle (tool), a rotating axis of a machine tool Biology * Common spindle and other species of shrubs and trees in genus ''Euony ...
, wayfarer and yew alongside plants like climbing roses,
fern A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...
s and
sage Sage or SAGE may refer to: Plants * ''Salvia officinalis'', common sage, a small evergreen subshrub used as a culinary herb ** Lamiaceae, a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint or deadnettle or sage family ** ''Salvia'', a large ...
. The courtyard garden has a
fig tree ''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending ...
, ''
Magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...
'',
rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
s and a medieval style flower bed surrounded by a mature ''
Buxus ''Buxus'' is a genus of about seventy species in the family Buxaceae. Common names include box or boxwood. The boxes are native to western and southern Europe, southwest, southern and eastern Asia, Africa, Madagascar, northernmost South ...
'' hedging. This garden was restored during the 1990s with
gravel Gravel is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally throughout the world as a result of sedimentary and erosive geologic processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone. Gravel is classifi ...
led paths and redesigned by B. Vellacot, a local volunteer. Around the main building there are flower beds with plants such as
catnip ''Nepeta cataria'', commonly known as catnip, catswort, catwort, and catmint, is a species of the genus ''Nepeta'' in the family Lamiaceae, native to southern and eastern Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and parts of China. It is widely n ...
, curry plants, ''
Fuchsia ''Fuchsia'' () is a genus of flowering plants that consists mostly of shrubs or small trees. The first to be scientifically described, '' Fuchsia triphylla'', was discovered on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republi ...
'',
lavender ''Lavandula'' (common name lavender) is a genus of 47 known species of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It is native to the Old World and is found in Cape Verde and the Canary Islands, and from Europe across to northern and easte ...
, periwinkle,
rosemary ''Salvia rosmarinus'' (), commonly known as rosemary, is a shrub with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple, or blue flowers, native plant, native to the Mediterranean Region, Mediterranean region. Until 2017, it was kn ...
, sage, Siberian bugloss, spirea and
winter jasmine ''Jasminum nudiflorum'', the winter jasmine, is a slender, deciduous shrub native to China ( Gansu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Xizang (Tibet), Yunnan). The flower's blossoming peaks right after winter, which is why it is also named Yingchun () in Chin ...
. Near the kitchen, there is a herb bed underneath a
silver birch ''Betula pendula'', commonly known as silver birch, warty birch, European white birch, or East Asian white birch, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, native to Europe and parts of Asia, though in southern Europe, it is only found ...
. The walled
kitchen garden The traditional kitchen garden, vegetable garden, also known as a potager (from the French ) or in Scotland a kailyaird, is a space separate from the rest of the residential garden – the ornamental plants and lawn areas. It is used for grow ...
has a
wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant probably is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is in any way different from the w ...
meadow, a cut flower bed, a bed with
strawberries The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...
and trees including
damson The damson () or damson plum (''Prunus domestica'' subsp. ''insititia'', or sometimes ''Prunus insititia''),M. H. Porche"Sorting ''Prunus'' names" in "Multilingual multiscript plant names database, University of Melbourne. Plantnames.unimelb.ed ...
,
fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...
,
greengage The greengages are a group of cultivars of the common European plum. The first true greengage came from a green-fruited wild plum ( fa , گوجه‌سبز, Gowjehsabz) which originated in Iran (Persia). Greengages are grown in temperate areas an ...
,
morello cherry ''Prunus cerasus'' (sour cherry, tart cherry, or dwarf cherry) is a species of ''Prunus'' in the subgenus '' Cerasus'' (cherries), native to much of Europe and southwest Asia. It is closely related to the sweet cherry (''Prunus avium''), but ha ...
,
olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...
,
pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the family Rosaceae, bearing the p ...
, plum and
quince The quince (; ''Cydonia oblonga'') is the sole member of the genus ''Cydonia'' in the Malinae subtribe (which also contains apples and pears, among other fruits) of the Rosaceae family (biology), family. It is a deciduous tree that bears hard ...
.
Vegetable Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, ...
s grown in the kitchen garden are
artichoke The globe artichoke (''Cynara cardunculus'' var. ''scolymus'' ),Rottenberg, A., and D. Zohary, 1996: "The wild ancestry of the cultivated artichoke." Genet. Res. Crop Evol. 43, 53–58. also known by the names French artichoke and green articho ...
,
carrot The carrot ('' Daucus carota'' subsp. ''sativus'') is a root vegetable, typically orange in color, though purple, black, red, white, and yellow cultivars exist, all of which are domesticated forms of the wild carrot, ''Daucus carota'', nat ...
,
chard Chard or Swiss chard (; ''Beta vulgaris'' subsp. ''vulgaris'', Cicla Group and Flavescens Group) is a green leafy vegetable. In the cultivars of the Flavescens Group, the leaf stalks are large and often prepared separately from the leaf blade; ...
,
courgette The zucchini (; plural: zucchini or zucchinis), courgette (; plural: courgettes) or baby marrow (''Cucurbita pepo'') is a summer squash, a vining herbaceous plant whose fruit are harvested when their immature seeds and epicarp (rind) are stil ...
,
kale Kale (), or leaf cabbage, belongs to a group of cabbage (''Brassica oleracea'') cultivars grown for their edible leaves, although some are used as ornamentals. Kale plants have green or purple leaves, and the central leaves do not form a head ...
,
leek The leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of ''Allium ampeloprasum'', the broadleaf wild leek ( syn. ''Allium porrum''). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a stem or stalk. The genus ''Alli ...
,
maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...
, marrow,
potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...
and
pumpkin A pumpkin is a vernacular term for mature winter squash of species and varieties in the genus ''Cucurbita'' that has culinary and cultural significance but no agreed upon botanical or scientific meaning. The term ''pumpkin'' is sometimes use ...
, which are used for consumption. There is also a
greenhouse A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of Transparent ceramics, transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic condit ...
where The Abbey grows winter rocket,
parsley Parsley, or garden parsley (''Petroselinum crispum'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae that is native to the central and eastern Mediterranean region (Sardinia, Lebanon, Israel, Cyprus, Turkey, southern Italy, Greece, Por ...
and
coriander Coriander (;
among others. The walls are flanked by shrubs including ''
Buddleja ''Buddleja'' (; ''Buddleia''; also historically given as ''Buddlea'') is a genus comprising over 140 species of flowering plants endemic to Asia, Africa, and the Americas. The generic name bestowed by Linnaeus posthumously honoured the Revere ...
'',
dogwoods ''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shrub ...
,
musk mallow Musk mallow or musk-mallow may refer to the following plants from the family Malvaceae: *''Abelmoschus moschatus'', native to India *''Malva alcea'', native to southern and eastern Europe and southwestern Asia, also known as the Greater Musk-mallow ...
s, elder and mock-orange. The grounds have resident
muntjac Muntjacs ( ), also known as the barking deer or rib-faced deer, (URL is Google Books) are small deer of the genus ''Muntiacus'' native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. Muntjacs are thought to have begun appearing 15–35 million years ago, ...
s and common wild animals include
hedgehog A hedgehog is a spiny mammal of the subfamily Erinaceinae, in the eulipotyphlan family Erinaceidae. There are seventeen species of hedgehog in five genera found throughout parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and in New Zealand by introducti ...
s,
grey squirrels Gray squirrel or grey squirrel may refer to several species of squirrel indigenous to North America: *The eastern gray squirrel (''Sciurus carolinensis''), from the eastern United States and southeastern Canada; introduced into the United Kingdom, I ...
,
fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...
es,
shrew Shrews (family Soricidae) are small mole-like mammals classified in the order Eulipotyphla. True shrews are not to be confused with treeshrews, otter shrews, elephant shrews, West Indies shrews, or marsupial shrews, which belong to different fa ...
s,
vole Voles are small rodents that are relatives of lemmings and hamsters, but with a stouter body; a longer, hairy tail; a slightly rounder head; smaller eyes and ears; and differently formed molars (high-crowned with angular cusps instead of low-c ...
s and woodmice, besides many
insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...
and
bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
species. The Abbey has also had sighting of the
common pipistrelle The common pipistrelle (''Pipistrellus pipistrellus'') is a small pipistrelle microbat whose very large range extends across most of Europe, North Africa, South Asia, and may extend into Korea. It is one of the most common bat species in the Brit ...
, the
serotine bat The serotine bat (''Eptesicus serotinus''), also known as the common serotine bat, big brown bat, or silky bat, is a fairly large Eurasian bat with quite large ears. It has a wingspan of around and often hunts in woodland. It sometimes roosts ...
and the rugged oil beetle (a rare ''
Meloe The blister beetle genus ''Meloe'' is a large, widespread group commonly referred to as oil beetles. They are known as "oil beetles" because they release oily droplets of hemolymph from their joints when disturbed; this contains cantharidin, a ...
'' species). File:Daffodils, The Abbey Sutton Courtenay.jpg File:Wildflower meadow, The Abbey Sutton Courtenay.jpg File:Garden, The Abbey Sutton Courtenay.jpg File:Garden2, The Abbey Sutton Courtenay.jpg


History


Middle Ages

In the seventh century, Sutton was gifted by King
Ine of Wessex Ine, also rendered Ini or Ina, ( la, Inus; c. AD 670 – after 726) was King of Wessex from 689 to 726. At Ine's accession, his kingdom dominated much of southern England. However, he was unable to retain the territorial gains of his predecessor ...
to
Abingdon Abbey Abingdon Abbey ( '' " St Mary's Abbey " '' ) was a Benedictine monastery located in the centre of Abingdon-on-Thames beside the River Thames. The abbey was founded c.675 AD in honour of The Virgin Mary. The Domesday Book of 1086 informs ...
, a
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 ...
monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
which had a strong local influence and extensive property in this area at the time, supposedly founded in 675. In the eleventh century,
William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...
granted the estate of Sutton to the
House of Courtenay The House of Courtenay is a medieval noble house, with branches in France, England and the Holy Land. One branch of the Courtenays became a Royal House of the Capetian Dynasty, cousins of the Bourbons and the Valois, and achieved the title o ...
, and the village became Sutton Courtenay. In 1090, King
William II of England William II ( xno, Williame;  – 2 August 1100) was King of England from 26 September 1087 until his death in 1100, with powers over Normandy and influence in Scotland. He was less successful in extending control into Wales. The third so ...
granted the church of Sutton and its lands and
tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more r ...
s to the monks of Abingdon Abbey. Abingdon Abbey constructed The Abbey as a
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 a ...
, used as an administrative centre for the abbey's land and tithe holdings. However, the owner of the hide of land, Alwi the priest (whose father owned the land before him according to the
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 ...
), agreed with the
abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...
that he should retain Sutton with reversion first to his son and thereafter to the abbey, on condition of giving in
Milton Milton may refer to: Names * Milton (surname), a surname (and list of people with that surname) ** John Milton (1608–1674), English poet * Milton (given name) ** Milton Friedman (1912–2006), Nobel laureate in Economics, author of '' Free t ...
chapelry immediately. Almost certainly in the late twelfth century, Abingdon Abbey took two thirds of the tithes and the
rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
the remaining third. In 1258, following a dispute, the land was formally appropriated to the abbey and a
vicarage A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically own ...
was ordained. As it was close to Abingdon Abbey, it was probably run by the monks themselves rather than being left to a steward. In 1278, however,
Hugh de Courtenay Sir Hugh de Courtenay (1251–1292) was the son and heir of John de Courtenay, feudal baron of Okehampton, Devon, by Isabel de Vere, daughter of Hugh de Vere, 4th Earl of Oxford. His son inherited the earldom of Devon. Early years Sir Hugh de ...
, Lord of the Manor of Sutton, sued the abbey for
advowson Advowson () or patronage is the right in English law of a patron (avowee) to present to the diocesan bishop (or in some cases the ordinary if not the same person) a nominee for appointment to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, ...
. An allegedly biased jury was impaneled and in 1284 it found unexpectedly for Courtenay. Solomon of Rochester, the chief justice of the eyre, who presided over the jury, was the first to be patronised by the Courtenays. The abbot of Abingdon Abbey alleged that in 1290, Solomon of Rochester had seized goods in it belonging to Abingdon Abbey. He also claimed that Solomon had extorted 40
marks Marks may refer to: Business * Mark's, a Canadian retail chain * Marks & Spencer, a British retail chain * Collective trade marks, trademarks owned by an organisation for the benefit of its members * Marks & Co, the inspiration for the novel '' ...
from the abbey for alleged dilapidations to the rectory house. He was not convicted of any offence. It is not clear how many of Solomon's successors actually used the house as a residence. Many of these men rarely visited Sutton, leaving the running of The Abbey to various underlings. William Steele, rector in 1371, left money to each of his four servants in Sutton. Robert of Walsham, rector from 1372 to 1384 and Dean of Wallingford, may have resided intermittently. His successor John Yernemouth was rector from 1384 to 1397 and did not reside but hired a chaplain to perform his duties. John Yernemouth was the
chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...
of Prince
John of Gaunt John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399) was an English royal prince, military leader, and statesman. He was the fourth son (third to survive infancy as William of Hatfield died shortly after birth) of King Edward ...
, son of King
Edward III of England 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 ro ...
. He left the rectory to William Brouns, father of Bishop Thomas Brouns, and two others sometime before 1394. By then, the building had become ruinous and badly roofed. Walter Medford, later
Archdeacon of Berkshire The Archdeacon of Berkshire (also rendered Archdeacon of Berks) is a senior ecclesiastical officer in the Church of England Diocese of Oxford. The archdeacon is the head of the archdeaconry of Berkshire, a post historically found within the diocese ...
, was rector from 1397 to 1413 and may well have used the house. His successor, Nicholas Colnet, also may have resided at the rectory. Colnet was the doctor of King
Henry V of England Henry V (16 September 1386 – 31 August 1422), also called Henry of Monmouth, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1413 until his death in 1422. Despite his relatively short reign, Henry's outstanding military successes in the ...
and was rector until 1420. He left money to the church and poor of Sutton.
Thomas Beckington Thomas Beckington (also spelt Beckynton; c. 139014 January 1465) was the Bishop of Bath and Wells and King's Secretary in medieval England under Henry VI. Life Beckington was born at Beckington in Somerset, and was educated at Winchester ...
, rector since 1420 and secretary of King
Henry VI of England Henry VI (6 December 1421 – 21 May 1471) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. The only child of Henry V, he succeeded to the English thron ...
, stayed at Sutton twice in 1442 and perhaps on other occasions. The ceiling of the solar is attributed to Beckington. In 1442, he was accompanied by William Say, who succeeded him as rector when Beckington became
Bishop of Bath and Wells The Bishop of Bath and Wells heads the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells in the Province of Canterbury in England. The present diocese covers the overwhelmingly greater part of the (ceremonial) county of Somerset and a small area of Do ...
in 1443. In 1444, Say obtained license to celebrate Divine Office in the house. The chapel was presumably new, and not used for long, since no other license is recorded. The south and east ranges at The Abbey were completed around the middle of the fifteenth century, just before
Thomas Courtenay, 6th/14th Earl of Devon Thomas Courtenay, 6th/14th Earl of Devon (1432 – 3 April 1461), was the eldest son of Thomas de Courtenay, 5th/13th Earl of Devon, by his wife Margaret Beaufort, the daughter of John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset, and Margaret Holland, daughter ...
, who was involved in the
Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These wars were fought bet ...
, was beheaded in 1461 and had his lands confiscated. Reginald Nutt,
lessee A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the user (referred to as the ''lessee'') to pay the owner (referred to as the ''lessor'') for the use of an asset. Property, buildings and vehicles are common assets that are leased. Industrial ...
in 1472 and chaplain of Sutton, was obliged to repair all thatched roofs and mud walls on the site, the repair of tiled and slated roofs and the provision of timber being the rector's responsibility. Some works survive from the period of Abingdon Abbey's control of the rectory before 1284. Since 1284 there are three medieval phases that can be closely dated. The first one can be attributed to Solomon of Rochester between 1284 and 1290. The second phase was between ca. 1320 and 1340, when among others the casing of the hall in stone was done. The third phase was around 1444, when William Say constructed the chapel screen and a door from the north to the east range on the first floor.


College of St George

In 1481,
Walter Devereux, 8th Baron Ferrers of Chartley Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...
, granted the advowson to
St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in England is a castle chapel built in the late-medieval Perpendicular Gothic style. It is both a Royal Peculiar (a church under the direct jurisdiction of the monarch) and the Chapel of the Order of the Gar ...
, and in 1485, the rectory was appropriated by King
Henry VII of England Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henry's mother, Margaret Beaufort ...
who transferred the house and its income to the
Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...
and Chapter of St George's Chapel in 1495. A second vicarage was ordained in 1496 and in 1497–8, the
College A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...
of St George paid for repairs to the stable, barns and dovehouse. The Abbey was then leased to local
squire In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight. Use of the term evolved over time. Initially, a squire served as a knight's apprentice. Later, a village leader or a lord of the manor might come to be known as a " ...
s by the College of St George for the next 350 years. Some lessees during this period include Richard Wyntersell (1514), John Hyde (1538), Thomas Sackford (1562) and John Fettiplace of Besils-Leigh (1564). Thomas Sackford's lease required him to entertain the College of St George's steward at the mansion house twice a year for two days and two nights, a provision that was still included in eighteenth-century leases. In 1589, the College of St George was contemplating legal action against Richard Hyde, son of the late lessee John Hyde, for failing to keep the house in repair. From 1611 to 1631 the lease was held by the Thomas Windsor, 6th
Baron Windsor Earl of Plymouth is a title that has been created three times: twice in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. History The first creation was in 1675 for Charles FitzCharles, one of the dozens of illegitima ...
. In 1634 the buildings included 'a very ancient parsonage house', three barns, a woolhouse, a sheephouse, a stable and a cowhouse. From 1669 onwards, the lease was held by the Justices of Sutton. In the late eighteenth century, the Justices began to extend the original leasehold curtilage by buying the freehold of adjoining tenements. Thomas Justice bought houses flanking the road on the west in 1773 and 1785. His son Francis bought a row of three cottages immediately east of the rectory plot in 1798, 1810 and later.


Modern period

In 1863 the lease was renewed by Theobald Theobald. The rectory estate passed to the
Ecclesiastical Commissioners The Ecclesiastical Commissioners were, in England and Wales, a body corporate, whose full title was Ecclesiastical and Church Estates Commissioners for England. The commissioners were authorized to determine the distribution of revenues of the Chu ...
under an order in council in 1867. But in 1877 Theobald bought the freehold. When Theobald died in 1884, his widow lived in the house until her nephew Colonel Henry Norton B. Good became the owner in 1902. Colonel Good was a member of the
Royal Fusiliers The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many wars ...
and served in the
Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...
. He decorated the great hall with hunting trophies. He died in 1929 and his widow auctioned the seven acre estate. Dorothy Elizabeth Pike became the owner and sold it in 1932 to Rev. George Berens-Dowdeswell, great-grandson of William Dowdeswell, and Mrs. Eveline Mary Berens-Dowdeswell (née Hunter), who sold their estate on Severn Ham, Tewkesbury. In 1941, Eve Fleming moved in. She was the mother of
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...
and ''
James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
''-creator
Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., a ...
by her first husband, and lived here until 1958.


David Astor

The estate was bought in 1958 by
David Astor Francis David Langhorne Astor, CH (5 March 1912 – 7 December 2001) was an English newspaper publisher, editor of ''The Observer'' at the height of its circulation and influence, and member of the Astor family, "the landlords of New York". Ea ...
(son of
Nancy Astor, Viscountess Astor Nancy Witcher Langhorne Astor, Viscountess Astor, (19 May 1879 – 2 May 1964) was an American-born British politician who was the first woman seated as a Member of Parliament (MP), serving from 1919 to 1945. Astor's first husband was America ...
), owner of the local
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 ...
since 1945 and publisher of ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'' (1948–1975). From late 1960 until 1970, the
Astor family The Astor family achieved prominence in business, society, and politics in the United States and the United Kingdom during the 19th and 20th centuries. With ancestral roots in the Italian Alps region of Italy by way of Germany, the Astors settle ...
leased The Abbey for a
peppercorn rent In legal parlance, a peppercorn is a metaphor for a very small cash payment or other nominal consideration, used to satisfy the requirements for the creation of a legal contract. It is featured in ''Chappell & Co Ltd v Nestle Co Ltd'' (960AC 87) ...
to the
Ockenden Venture Ockenden International is an English international development non-governmental organisation that helps displaced persons become self-sufficient. They work in Afghanistan, Cambodia, Iran, Lebanon, Pakistan, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda. History ...
. The Ockenden Venture, now Ockenden International, is an English development non-governmental organisation established in 1951 that helps displaced persons become self-sufficient. The Abbey was used as a refugee children's home. The room which now serves as the dining room was used as a class room for the Ockenden students. The solar was a dormitory for girls while the boys stayed in the room now housing the library. Joan and Dane Leadlay were the first Ockenden houseparents of The Abbey. Initially, The Abbey housed refugee girls from
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
, followed by students from
Rumania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and t ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
and
Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
. Margaret Dixon took over the running of The Abbey in 1966, bringing with her some of the older Donington boys. In October 1973, the 14th
Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current Dal ...
,
Tenzin Gyatso The 14th Dalai Lama (spiritual name Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, known as Tenzin Gyatso (Tibetan: བསྟན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ་, Wylie: ''bsTan-'dzin rgya-mtsho''); né Lhamo Thondup), known as ...
, visited The Abbey as part of his first trip to the West. He held a reception in the great hall for fellow
Tibetan people The Tibetan people (; ) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Tibet. Their current population is estimated to be around 6.7 million. In addition to the majority living in Tibet Autonomous Region of China, significant numbers of Tibetans live ...
who since the 1960s had fled to the United Kingdom after the
Chinese invasion of Tibet Tibet came under the control of People's Republic of China (PRC) after the Government of Tibet signed the Seventeen Point Agreement which the 14th Dalai Lama ratified on 24 October 1951, but later repudiated on the grounds that he rendered his ...
. The
Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
leader wanted to meet people who were “thinking deeply about the problems of mankind”. He urged
British Buddhists British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
to “develop compassion”. In 1974 it was lent, by David Astor, to the exiled
Colin Winter Colin O'Brien Winter (10 October 1928 – 17 November 1981), was an English Anglicanism, Anglican bishop, who served as Bishop of Damaraland, a diocese of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa (now the Anglican Church of Southern Africa) ...
, who was the
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 ...
Bishop of Damaraland, now the
Diocese of Namibia The Diocese of Namibia is part of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, which is itself part of the Anglican Communion. The diocese, which covers the whole country of Namibia, was originally known as the Diocese of Damaraland. Most of the Angli ...
. The Abbey was then used to house the
Namibia International Peace Centre The Namibia International Peace Centre was a non-governmental organization which was active between 1974 and 1981. It was based in The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay and later in Bethnal Green, East London. It was established by Bishop Colin Winter (192 ...
. In 1972, Winter was deported after opposing South Africa's policy of
apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
but remained 'bishop-in-exile'. In England, he continued to advocate for
Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
n independence and he was known for his
anti-establishment An anti-establishment view or belief is one which stands in opposition to the conventional social, political, and economic principles of a society. The term was first used in the modern sense in 1958, by the British magazine ''New Statesman'' ...
remarks, such as his criticism on
Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...
in 1978. Astor visited Sutton Courtenay frequently, and regarded it with a great deal of affection. Visitors over the years included
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
,
Evelyn Waugh Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires ''Decli ...
,
Lady Mary Lygon Lady Mary Lygon (formerly Princess Romanovsky-Pavlovsky; 12 February 1910 – 27 September 1982), known as Maimie, was a British aristocrat and Russian princess by marriage. Royal match failure Lady Mary Lygon was born at Madresfield Court ...
,
Chips Channon Sir Henry Channon (7 March 1897 – 7 October 1958), often known as Chips Channon, was an American-born British Conservative politician, author and diarist. Channon moved to England in 1920 and became strongly anti-American, feeling that Amer ...
and
Lady Diana Cooper Diana, Viscountess Norwich (née Lady Diana Olivia Winifred Maud Manners; 29 August 1892 – 16 June 1986) was an English actress and aristocrat who was a well-known social figure in London and Paris. As a young woman, she moved in a celebrat ...
, who described the village as “the place above all others for romance and gathering rosebuds and making hay and jumping over the moon,” and noted how “flowers literally overflowed everything and drifted off in to a wilderness”. Astor, after a trip to Jura, helped a local family, the Mackenzies, relocate to Sutton Courtenay, knowing that
Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
life wasn't kind to the family. Later members of the Mackenzie family continue to live in the village today. In 1975 Astor resigned as editor but continued to support a number of charities and to finance pressure groups for causes that he strongly believed in, such as the
Koestler Trust Koestler Arts (formerly The Koestler Trust) is a charity which helps ex-offenders, secure patients and detainees in the UK to express themselves creatively. It promotes the arts in prisons, secure hospitals, immigration centres and in the commun ...
, a charity helping ex-offenders express themselves creatively. Astor died in December 2001, and is buried in All Saints' parish churchyard, Sutton Courtenay in a grave with a simple headstone bearing only his name and years of birth and death. In an adjacent grave is his friend
Eric Arthur Blair Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...
, better known by his pen name
George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...
. Astor bought both burial plots when he learned that Orwell had asked to be buried in an English country churchyard.


The New Era Centre

In 1978, the Astor family sold the house and parts of the grounds, and it came into ownership of a
property developer Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of developed land or parcels to others. R ...
in 1979. After months of torrential rain that hindered work, the house was sold in 1980 to The New Era Centre, a
non-profit charity A foundation (also a charitable foundation) is a category of nonprofit organization or charitable trust that typically provides funding and support for other charitable organizations through grants, but may also engage directly in charitable act ...
established by Dr Fred Blum in 1967. During his lifetime, Blum became a member of the
Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...
, whilst maintaining his Jewish heritage. In 1963, Blum resigned from his academic posts in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
and pursued a future based in the United Kingdom. In 1969, he met Bishop Stephen Verney at a conference in
Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...
where Verney was doing
reconciliation Reconciliation or reconcile may refer to: Accounting * Reconciliation (accounting) Arts, entertainment, and media Sculpture * ''Reconciliation'' (Josefina de Vasconcellos sculpture), a sculpture by Josefina de Vasconcellos in Coventry Cathedra ...
work. They became friends, “like brothers”, and Verney became a
trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...
and significant supporter and contributor to the creation and work of The New Era Centre at The Abbey, which became a
registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a ch ...
on 20 December 1979. Verney was a well-connected individual, and frequently communicated with the politician
Roy Jenkins Roy Harris Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Hillhead, (11 November 1920 – 5 January 2003) was a British politician who served as President of the European Commission from 1977 to 1981. At various times a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Lab ...
. The residential community of The New Era Centre in The Abbey was dedicated on 4 October 1981 as a space to explore and work towards the synthesis of
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
and more contemporary understandings of societal transformation. In 1984, after The Abbey was improved to a habitable state, the first two resident community members moved in. Stephen Verney extensively discussed, and believed in, the role Buddhist practice and philosophy could play in increasing connectivity with a Christian deity, and it was this belief which led many of The New Era Centre's early pursuits. Blum spent decades researching, interviewing and publishing on
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
's life works and legacy. So too did The Abbey welcome
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n thinkers, such as the social activist and spiritual leader
Vimala Thakar Vimala Thakar (born 15 April 1921 Ramnavmi day at Bilaspur and died on 11 March 2009 at Falgun Poornima at Mt. Abu) was an Indian social activist and spiritual teacher. Born into a middle-class family living at Akola city in Maharashtra state in In ...
who, in the 1980s, led a seminar here. Among the earliest events taking place at The Abbey was the annual
Gandhi Foundation The Gandhi Foundation is a United Kingdom-based voluntary organisation which seeks to further the work of Mahatma Gandhi through a variety of educational events and activities. Aims and activities As part of its mission, the Gandhi Foundation ...
Summer School that continued to be held there. Verney retired in 1985 and Blum died in January 1990. Much of Blum's work can now be found in The Abbey's library. Twentieth-century landowners had to contend with various states of disrepair, and few have had either the capital or the will to sustain the business. Upon the purchase of The Abbey by The New Era Centre in 1980, a monumental effort was required to source volunteer labour, both locally and from abroad. Sourcing funding was difficult, and some potential investors remained unconvinced that the founders high ideals could lead to anything other than a misuse of funds. However, Blum and Verney remained committed to their project, disputing each critical point. Much of the work was carried out in a co-operative form, such as the 'work camp' of 1981, a community of enthusiastic volunteers. Volunteers from organisations such as
WWOOF World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF, ), or World Wide Organization of Organic Farms, is a loose network of national organizations that facilitate homestays on organic farms. , Australia with 2,600 hosts has the most host farms an ...
UK and HelpX still play a vital role in keeping The Abbey alive. In August 1991, the charity was renamed 'The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay'. Rooted in the Christian tradition yet open to other faiths, The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay is to this day home to a small resident community and serves as a
spiritual retreat The meaning of a spiritual retreat can be different for different religious communities. Spiritual retreats are an integral part of many Hindu, Jewish, Buddhist, Christian and Sufi communities. In Hinduism and Buddhism, meditative retreats are ...
and conference centre. Around 2006, communal worship moved from group prayers to group meditation and since 2007 concerts have been hosted here as well. In 2008, The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay launched its own website and in 2019 a history research project started as part of its 40th Anniversary Programme.


Gallery

File:The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay7.jpg, The courtyard File:The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay20.jpg, The Abbey as seen from the south with the labyrinth in front. File:The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay5.jpg, Gardens of The Abbey File:The Abbey, Sutton Courtenay4.jpg, Gardens of The Abbey


See also

*
Grade I listed buildings in Vale of White Horse There are more than 9,000 Grade I listed buildings in England. This page is a list of these buildings in the district of Vale of White Horse in Oxfordshire. List of buildings See also * Grade II* li ...
*
List of country houses in the United Kingdom This is intended to be as full a list as possible of country houses, castles, palaces, other stately homes, and manor houses in the United Kingdom and the Channel Islands; any architecturally notable building which has served as a residence for ...
*
Medieval architecture Medieval architecture is architecture common in the Middle Ages, and includes religious, civil, and military buildings. Styles include pre-Romanesque, Romanesque, and Gothic. While most of the surviving medieval architecture is to be seen in c ...


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * *


External links


The Abbey Community Retreat and Conference Centre
(official website).
Exploring Surrey's PastImages of England: Statutory list description
. Free login required. {{DEFAULTSORT:Abbey Sutton Courtenay, The Country houses in Oxfordshire History of Berkshire Grade I listed houses in Oxfordshire Charities based in Oxfordshire Spiritual retreats