Ipswich Whitefriars
Encyclopedia
Ipswich Whitefriars is the name usually given to the Carmelite Priory
, a Catholic religious house, which formerly stood near the centre of the medieval town of Ipswich
, the county town of Suffolk
, UK. The Priory was founded in the 13th century (probably 1278-79) as an establishment of the Carmelite Order of White Friars, and stood until the 1530s, when its ancient revenues and endowments were depleted by Thomas Cromwell during the Dissolution of the Monasteries
. In its heyday it was the home of many eminent scholars, supplied several Provincial superior
s of the Order in England, and was repeatedly host to the provincial chapters of the Order. The site of the Priory is identified and has been exposed by excavation, but nothing now remains visible above ground.
to Sir Thomas de Loudham (but by John Speed
to Lord Bardesley, Sir Jeffrey Hadley and Sir Robert Norton), and to the date 1279. The founding was simultaneous with the Carmelite house at Winchester
(1278), closely following a Carmelite provincial chapter held at Norwich
. King Edward I
visited Ipswich in 1277, and in 1279 passed the Mortmain
Act which gave many benefits to the Carmelites. The Order did not recognise the principle of filiation, so that Ipswich was not a daughter-house of Norwich, but looked only to the authority of the General and Provincial chapters. However, the first members of the new community were probably chosen from among those of Norwich.
The site chosen was in the centre of the town, in an area south of the Buttermarket street and north of Old Foundry Road, at first to the east of St Stephen's Lane and afterwards over much of the area from St Stephen's Lane westward toward Queen Street. This block corresponds roughly to the area occupied by the modern Ipswich Buttermarket shopping centre, erected c.1990. The Priory lay on land of St Nicholas and St Lawrence parishes, though the Priory Gate (known as 'Stonehams') was in St Stephen's parish. During the Buttermarket excavations of 1987, the plundered footings of the Carmelite priory church were identified (beneath the site of the Buttermarket centre frontage), aligned at right-angles to St Stephen's Lane and with its east front overlooking the lower part of the lane.
St Stephen's Lane formed part of an ancient street leading north through Ipswich from a ford of the river Orwell, but its function as a northward route out of town had been curtailed since the building of the town ramparts during the 10th century. (A rubble-built wall running along the west side of this road, north and south, thought to be part of the Whitefriars perimeter wall, was seen during excavations in 1899.) The Carmelites obtained the right to enclose a town lane 150 yards long in January 1297 (when King Edward was again in Ipswich), and further purchases of land or alienations were made to them c.1316, 1329 and 1332: a final enlargement was made by a purchase for 100 marks by Prior John Reppes in 1396.
), had joined the Order after the death of his wife, and had received his own son Thomas into the Order. (Thomas became a very devout follower of the rule, took degrees at Cambridge, and wrote books on philosophy, theology and the Apocalypse.) Following the death of a provincial superior, a chapter was held at Ipswich in 1300, at which the then Ipswich Prior, William Ludlyngton (a native of Lincoln
, who had studied at Oxford
), was elected the new Provincial. Three years later, at a General chapter at Narbonne
, the General superior Gerard of Boulogne announced his intention to split the English province by creating a separate Irish province. Ludlyngton, Thomas de Yllea and many others opposed him, but after a Papal intervention and a great chapter at London in 1305, Ludlyngton was forced to resign and was sent to Paris "to fast and to read Divinity", and Thomas de Yllea similarly was sent to Bruges as a lecturer.
In 1452 the monastery entertained King Henry VI with his entire suite. Over the next 25 years the church was entirely rebuilt (creating the structure revealed by excavation). The new church was consecrated in 1477 by Friar Thomas Bradley (Scrope), Bishop of Dromore
. It is known from a will dated 1463 that there was a chapel to St John the Baptist
in the Priory Church, where the benefactor desired to be buried and to have masses sung for his soul. Town burgesses and merchants sought to arrange for their funerals and burials to take place in the church, and there are sundry records of bequests. Henry Fulslo left a barrel of beer to each of the three orders of Friars in Ipswich, in 1486: John Whelmeton, a tailor, left a cloak for every Ipswich friar in 1495.
(b. 1495), later Bishop of Ossory
, was educated at the Norwich Carmelite house and at Cambridge University, and was elected (the last) Prior of Ipswich Carmelites in 1533. While at Ipswich he wrote a number of works, and made an intensive survey of the writers of Britain whose works were preserved in the monastic libraries of his time. He appears to have left the office before the house was finally dissolved. In its last days the community became extremely impoverished, and were compelled to sell several of their messuages to raise money for their food, the Visitor having allowed them only £4 a year as a pittance. The Prior and his co-brethren made a petition to Thomas Cromwell (the text of which is preserved) showing that a man named Copping had withheld his dues to them. The reply is not recorded, but the outcome was the end of the monastery. The Ancient House, Ipswich
, on land not far from the Priory gate, was acquired by one George Copping in 1567 and substantially renovated. Part of the monastic buildings were used for the town gaol or Sessions House for a time, but was demolished in 1698: most traces of the Priory disappeared very rapidly.
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
, a Catholic religious house, which formerly stood near the centre of the medieval town of Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
, the county town of Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, UK. The Priory was founded in the 13th century (probably 1278-79) as an establishment of the Carmelite Order of White Friars, and stood until the 1530s, when its ancient revenues and endowments were depleted by Thomas Cromwell during the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
. In its heyday it was the home of many eminent scholars, supplied several Provincial superior
Provincial superior
A Provincial Superior is a major superior of a religious order acting under the order's Superior General and exercising a general supervision over all the members of that order in a territorial division of the order called a province--similar to but not to be confused with an ecclesiastical...
s of the Order in England, and was repeatedly host to the provincial chapters of the Order. The site of the Priory is identified and has been exposed by excavation, but nothing now remains visible above ground.
Foundation and site
The foundation is attributed by William DugdaleWilliam Dugdale
Sir William Dugdale was an English antiquary and herald. As a scholar he was influential in the development of medieval history as an academic subject.-Life:...
to Sir Thomas de Loudham (but by John Speed
John Speed
John Speed was an English historian and cartographer.-Life:He was born at Farndon, Cheshire, and went into his father's tailoring business where he worked until he was about 50...
to Lord Bardesley, Sir Jeffrey Hadley and Sir Robert Norton), and to the date 1279. The founding was simultaneous with the Carmelite house at Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
(1278), closely following a Carmelite provincial chapter held at Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
. King Edward I
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
visited Ipswich in 1277, and in 1279 passed the Mortmain
Mortmain
Mortmain is a legal term that means ownership of real estate by a corporation or legal institution that can be transferred or sold in perpetuity; the term is usually used in the context of its prohibition...
Act which gave many benefits to the Carmelites. The Order did not recognise the principle of filiation, so that Ipswich was not a daughter-house of Norwich, but looked only to the authority of the General and Provincial chapters. However, the first members of the new community were probably chosen from among those of Norwich.
The site chosen was in the centre of the town, in an area south of the Buttermarket street and north of Old Foundry Road, at first to the east of St Stephen's Lane and afterwards over much of the area from St Stephen's Lane westward toward Queen Street. This block corresponds roughly to the area occupied by the modern Ipswich Buttermarket shopping centre, erected c.1990. The Priory lay on land of St Nicholas and St Lawrence parishes, though the Priory Gate (known as 'Stonehams') was in St Stephen's parish. During the Buttermarket excavations of 1987, the plundered footings of the Carmelite priory church were identified (beneath the site of the Buttermarket centre frontage), aligned at right-angles to St Stephen's Lane and with its east front overlooking the lower part of the lane.
St Stephen's Lane formed part of an ancient street leading north through Ipswich from a ford of the river Orwell, but its function as a northward route out of town had been curtailed since the building of the town ramparts during the 10th century. (A rubble-built wall running along the west side of this road, north and south, thought to be part of the Whitefriars perimeter wall, was seen during excavations in 1899.) The Carmelites obtained the right to enclose a town lane 150 yards long in January 1297 (when King Edward was again in Ipswich), and further purchases of land or alienations were made to them c.1316, 1329 and 1332: a final enlargement was made by a purchase for 100 marks by Prior John Reppes in 1396.
Early Provincials
The Ipswich house rapidly became involved in the leading affairs of the English province. An early Prior, Richard de Yllea (Monks EleighMonks Eleigh
Monks Eleigh is a village and a civil parish in Babergh, Suffolk, United Kingdom, situated on the tributary to the River Brett in a rural area. The parish church, St. Peter, has a 15th century tower which can be seen from the surrounding countryside. Some houses round the village green date back to...
), had joined the Order after the death of his wife, and had received his own son Thomas into the Order. (Thomas became a very devout follower of the rule, took degrees at Cambridge, and wrote books on philosophy, theology and the Apocalypse.) Following the death of a provincial superior, a chapter was held at Ipswich in 1300, at which the then Ipswich Prior, William Ludlyngton (a native of Lincoln
Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Lincoln is a cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England.The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a population of 85,595; the 2001 census gave the entire area of Lincoln a population of 120,779....
, who had studied at Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
), was elected the new Provincial. Three years later, at a General chapter at Narbonne
Narbonne
Narbonne is a commune in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Once a prosperous port, it is now located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea...
, the General superior Gerard of Boulogne announced his intention to split the English province by creating a separate Irish province. Ludlyngton, Thomas de Yllea and many others opposed him, but after a Papal intervention and a great chapter at London in 1305, Ludlyngton was forced to resign and was sent to Paris "to fast and to read Divinity", and Thomas de Yllea similarly was sent to Bruges as a lecturer.
- John Barkhamstead, a former Prior of Ipswich, was elected Provincial in 1312.
- John Polested, a friar of Ipswich from his youth who afterwards studied at Oxford, became Vicar-General under the General Petrus de Casa (1330-1339) and Provincial from 1335 until his death in 1341: the author of more than twenty scholarly works, he was buried at YorkYorkYork is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
. - John Kynyngham, another member of the Ipswich community, was elected Provincial of England and Ireland in a chapter at YarmouthGreat YarmouthGreat Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...
in 1393, and held it until his death in 1399. He was the confessor of John of Gaunt, and at Oxford frequently disputed with John WycliffeJohn WycliffeJohn Wycliffe was an English Scholastic philosopher, theologian, lay preacher, translator, reformer and university teacher who was known as an early dissident in the Roman Catholic Church during the 14th century. His followers were known as Lollards, a somewhat rebellious movement, which preached...
. He wrote a disputative book against Wycliffe, and commentaries, treatises, sermons and 13 books on metaphysics. - Friar Nicholas Kenton received his early education at Ipswich Whitefriars, before studying at Cambridge. He became renowned as historian, poet, philosopher, theologian and orator, and became chancellor of the University of CambridgeUniversity of CambridgeThe University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
for 1445. He was elected Provincial of the Carmelite Order in 1444 until his resignation in 1456. He was the author of many books including a Life of Saint Cyril of ConstantinopleCyril of ConstantinopleSaint Cyril of Constantinople was a General of the Carmelites and prior of the hermits on Mount Carmel for three years. He is reputed to have had the gift of prophecy....
, a Carmelite saint.
Ipswich Carmelite worthies
- Sir Thomas de Loudham, the supposed founder, was buried in the monastery church.
- John Paschall, of a noble Suffolk family, entered the Order at Ipswich and studied there before taking A.B. at Cambridge in 1333. Famed for his learning, speaking and volumes of over 150 sermons, he became Bishop of Scutari (1344) and Bishop of LlandaffBishop of LlandaffThe Bishop of Llandaff is the Ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff.-Area of authority:The diocese covers most of the County of Glamorgan. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul , in the village of Llandaff, just north-west of the City of...
(1347-1361). - Friar John, a native of Bury St Edmunds, author of many commentaries on the scriptures, lived at Ipswich Whitefriars and died there soon after 1350.
- Friar Richard Lavyngham of Suffolk (d. 1383) took the habit at the Ipswich Whitefriars. He later proceeded to Oxford where he became an extremely scholarly philosopher and theologian, devoted to bringing heretics back to orthodoxy by force of argument. He was famous for his lectures, covering the entire course of study, the texts of which are contained in more than 90 volumes. His works included one on the origin of the Carmelite Order. He became Carmelite Prior at BristolBristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
. Some authors claim that he was slain with Simon of Sudbury, Archbishop of Canterbury, in 1381. - John Balsham (c. 1357-1425), formerly Bishop of ArgyllBishop of ArgyllThe Bishop of Argyll or Bishop of Lismore was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Argyll, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics. It was created in 1200, when the western half of the territory of the Bishopric of Dunkeld was formed into the new diocese. The bishops were based at Lismore...
, died and was buried here. - John Barmyngham, elected Prior c. 1440, died 1448. He held doctorates from Oxford and ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and was considered one of the finest scholars of his time. There was a second John Barmyngham (friar), probably a relative, who died in 1458. - Thomas Lavenham (or Lavyngham), an Ipswich Carmelite author of a Commentary on Aristotle's Physics, became one of the first fellows of All Souls College, OxfordAll Souls College, OxfordThe Warden and the College of the Souls of all Faithful People deceased in the University of Oxford or All Souls College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England....
in 1447.
Other affairs
During the mid-14th century Sir Geoffrey Badley joined the Ipswich Whitefriars, one of several knights attracted to the order who, however, held only junior positions owing to their lack of learning. Edmund Brounfield, Abbot of Bury St Edmund's, took refuge with the Ipswich Carmelites in 1379 when his monks had driven him out: the house of the Rector of St Stephen's church, close to the Priory, was ransacked in the Peasant's Revolt of 1381. Around 1400 here began the Institute of Recluses, the early female department of the Order. There was a very devoted woman at Ipswich named Agnes, who had a remarkable spirit of prayer and penance. The Recluses observed the rule closely, having a mostly vegetarian diet, wearing hair shirts, waking at midnight throughout the winter and at dawn in summer, fasting on Fridays and Saturdays (bread and ale only on Fridays), and devoting much time to prayers.In 1452 the monastery entertained King Henry VI with his entire suite. Over the next 25 years the church was entirely rebuilt (creating the structure revealed by excavation). The new church was consecrated in 1477 by Friar Thomas Bradley (Scrope), Bishop of Dromore
Bishop of Dromore
The Bishop of Dromore is an episcopal title which takes its name after the market town of Dromore in County Down, Northern Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church the title still continues as a separate bishopric, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with other bishoprics.-History:The...
. It is known from a will dated 1463 that there was a chapel to St John the Baptist
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
in the Priory Church, where the benefactor desired to be buried and to have masses sung for his soul. Town burgesses and merchants sought to arrange for their funerals and burials to take place in the church, and there are sundry records of bequests. Henry Fulslo left a barrel of beer to each of the three orders of Friars in Ipswich, in 1486: John Whelmeton, a tailor, left a cloak for every Ipswich friar in 1495.
The last days
John BaleJohn Bale
John Bale was an English churchman, historian and controversialist, and Bishop of Ossory. He wrote the oldest known historical verse drama in English , and developed and published a very extensive list of the works of British authors down to his own time, just as the monastic libraries were being...
(b. 1495), later Bishop of Ossory
Bishop of Ossory
The Bishop of Ossory is an episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient of Kingdom of Ossory in the Province of Leinster, Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with other bishoprics.-History:The diocese of Ossory...
, was educated at the Norwich Carmelite house and at Cambridge University, and was elected (the last) Prior of Ipswich Carmelites in 1533. While at Ipswich he wrote a number of works, and made an intensive survey of the writers of Britain whose works were preserved in the monastic libraries of his time. He appears to have left the office before the house was finally dissolved. In its last days the community became extremely impoverished, and were compelled to sell several of their messuages to raise money for their food, the Visitor having allowed them only £4 a year as a pittance. The Prior and his co-brethren made a petition to Thomas Cromwell (the text of which is preserved) showing that a man named Copping had withheld his dues to them. The reply is not recorded, but the outcome was the end of the monastery. The Ancient House, Ipswich
Ancient House, Ipswich
The Ancient House, Ipswich, also known as Sparrowes House, is a Grade I listed building dating from the 15th century located in the Buttermarket area. In 1980 the building was acquired by Ipswich Borough Council.-Architecture:...
, on land not far from the Priory gate, was acquired by one George Copping in 1567 and substantially renovated. Part of the monastic buildings were used for the town gaol or Sessions House for a time, but was demolished in 1698: most traces of the Priory disappeared very rapidly.
External links
- Benedict Zimmermann on the Carmelite Order (Catholic Encyclopedia 1908) http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03354a.htm