St. George's Priory, Thetford was a

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

priory on the

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

side of

Thetford Thetford is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Breckland District of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road (England), A11 road between Norwich and London, just east of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, coverin ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. It was located at the current site of the

British Trust for Ornithology The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) is an organisation founded in 1932 for the study of birds in the British Isles. The William, Prince of Wales, Prince of Wales has been patron since October 2020. History Beginning In 1931 Max Nicholson ...

, South of Nuns Bridges Road.Norfolk Heritage Explorer- St George's Nunnery
(see also 'show on map' option) 'possibly as early as 1016' -citing 'Monograph: British Trust for Ornithology. n.d.. The history of the site and its existing buildings.'

History

The priory was founded by Uvius, Abbot of Bury St. Edmunds from 1020 to 1044,A History of the County of Suffolk: Volume 2 Pages 85-86: Houses of Benedictine nuns: Priory of St George, Thetford
''www.british-history.ac.uk'', accessed 13 January 2021 although there are references to a direct connection with

Cnut Cnut ( ; ; – 12 November 1035), also known as Canute and with the epithet the Great, was King of England from 1016, King of Denmark from 1018, and King of Norway from 1028 until his death in 1035. The three kingdoms united under Cnut's rul ...

in 1016. By circa 1160, the Priory had become 'depressed with poverty', and the two remaining members, Toleard and Andrew, told Abbot Hugh, then abbot of

Bury St Edmunds Bury St Edmunds (), commonly referred to locally as ''Bury,'' is a cathedral as well as market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk District, West Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer map 211: Bury St. Edmunds an ...

, that they wished to withdraw. The abbot and convent of St. Edmunds, having received references from the

bishop of Norwich The Bishop of Norwich is the Ordinary (Catholic Church), ordinary of the Church of England Anglican Diocese of Norwich, Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers most of the county of Norfolk and part of Suffolk. Th ...

, the

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, and the sheriff of Norfolk and Suffolk, sent prioress Cecilia and a group of Benedictine

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

s who had been living at Lyng, Norfolk, to Thetford priory. Abbot Hugh gave the priory two parish churches in

(St. Benedict and All Saints) together with rights over the belongings of the abbey of Bury 'within the limits of Thetford'. In 1424 the friars granted to William Curteys,

prior of

Bury St Edmunds Abbey The Abbey of Bury St Edmunds was once among the richest Benedictine Monastery, monasteries in England, until its Dissolution of the Monasteries, dissolution in 1539. It is in the town that grew up around it, Bury St Edmunds in the county of Suff ...

, and his brethren the use of the best chamber of this house, called the 'common recreatory,' which was henceforth to be termed St. Edmund's House; they were to occupy it as they liked, but not to grant or alienate it without the consent of the friars. This must have been a great convenience to the abbey of St. Edmunds, as it held the patronage and was responsible for the lands of the adjacent nunnery."Friaries: Thetford", ''A History of the County of Norfolk'' Volume 2. (William Page, ed.) London: Victoria County History, 1906. 433-435. British History Online. Web. 2 September 2022
/ref> The priory continued, with typically a total of ten 'professed nuns' and novices, until its dissolution in February, 1537. At this stage the last prioress, Elizabeth Hothe, was awarded a pension, upon which she survived at least sixteen years to attain the age of 100. The buildings and land were granted to Sir Richard Fulmerston. The buildings were converted to a house, where Fulmerston's son-in-law Edward Clere welcomed

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

in 1578. In the early seventeenth century a new house was built, known as The Place, and the church was converted into a barn."Tudors and Jacobeans", Thetford Town Council
/ref>

Prioresses of St. George, Thetford

One source, '' A History of the County of Suffolk'', gives the following list of Prioresses (variants on this are noted according to ''An Essay Towards A Topographical History of the County of Norfolk'') *Cecilia, c. 1160 *Agnes, occurs 1253 *Ellen de Berdesette ('Ellen de Berdewell'An Essay Towards A Topographical History of the County of Norfolk: Volume 2. Pages 91-95 Prioresses : Of the Monastery of the Benedictine or black nuns of St. George in Thetford
''www.british-history.ac.uk'', accessed 13 January 2021), elected 1310 *Margaret Bretom, elected 1329 *Beatrix de Lystone, elected 1330 *Danetta de Wakethorp ('Dametta de Bakethorp'), elected 1339 *Margaret Campleon, elected 1396 *Margaret Chykering, elected 1418 *Alice Wesenham, elected 1420 *Margaret Copynger ('Margaret Copyng' or 'Margery Copinger'), elected 1466 *Joan Eyton, elected 1477 *Elizabeth Mounteneye, elected 1498 *Lady Eliz. Gournay, 'installed' 1518 *Sarah Frost, elected 1519 *Elizabeth Hothe (alias 'Heath', installed 1534,) occurs 1535, last prioress

References

Location: {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Georges Priory, Thetford Monasteries in Norfolk Thetford

History

Prioresses of St. George, Thetford

See also

Other mediaeval ecclesiastical foundations in Thetford

References