Kirkstead
Encyclopedia
Kirkstead is an ancient village
and former parish
on the River Witham
in Lincolnshire
, England
. It was amalgamated with the civil parish
of Woodhall Spa
in 1987.
(the name Kirkstead means "the site of a church" ) founded in 1139 by Hugh Brito, lord of Tattershall and originally colonised by an abbot
and twelve monk
s from Fountains Abbey
in Yorkshire
. It was around this abbey that the little settlement of Kirkstead grew. The abbey remained in existence until 1537, when it was dissolved and Richard Harrison (the last Abbot) and three of his monks were executed
by King Henry VIII
following their implication (probably unjustly) in the Lincolnshire Rising of the previous year.
The abbey and manor
of Kirkstead passed to the Duke of Suffolk
, Henry VIII's brother-in-law, and later to the Clintons, Earls of Lincoln
, who built a large country house
. By 1791 that too had gone, and all that remains today is a dramatic crag of masonry - a fragment of the south transept wall of the abbey church and the earthworks of the vast complex of buildings that once surrounded it.
The church of St Leonard's Without, thus named as it was outside the gates of the abbey, stands in a field by the side of the ruins of the abbey. Built between 1230 and 1240 it is an excellent example of the Early English style
. Measuring only 12.8 metres (42 ft) by 5.8 metres (19 ft) it is up to "Cathedral standards" and may well have been built as a chantry
chapel in memory of Robert de Tattershall who died in 1212. After many centuries use as a church, it closed in 1877, when a Presbyterian congregation was evicted, and from 1883 "The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings
" fought to save it from total decay. Eventually during 1913 and 1914 it was restored by the architect Weir.
Kirkstead remained an isolated hamlet
, but the area by the River Witham, 'Kirkstead Wharfs' developed as a locally important trading point on the canal system for goods being imported and exported in the local area, including coal.
With the opening in 1848 of the Lincoln to Boston line of the London and York Railway, a station was built here which was the nearest station to the increasingly fashionable spa town
of Woodhall Spa, 2 km (1.2 mi) away. The resulting carriage trade, carrying the gentry
to and from the spa, lasted until 1855 when a branch line opened from Kirkstead Station, (which then became known as Woodhall Junction) to Woodhall Spa and Horncastle. Woodhall Spa and Horncastle stations were closed to passengers in 1954, and Woodhall Junction closed with the closure of its railway line in 1970.
The arrival of the railways greatly decreased the isolation of Kirkstead and the surrounding area. Kirkstead Wharfs was absorbed by the encroaching civil parish
of Woodhall Spa in 1894, and the rest was incorporated into it in 1987, so that Kirkstead is now the western part of Woodhall Spa between the village centre and the River Witham
.
The Kirkstead Bridge is a concrete arch bridge
spanning the River Witham
at Kirkstead
in Woodhall Spa. It carries the B1191 as it runs from Horncastle to the A15 road just north of Dunsby St Andrew
and was finished and opened in 1968. The bridge replaced an existing swing bridge
alongside it, which had itself replaced a ferry
which operated until the early 20th century.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and former parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
on the River Witham
River Witham
The River Witham is a river, almost entirely in the county of Lincolnshire, in the east of England. It rises south of Grantham close to South Witham, at SK8818, passes Lincoln at SK9771 and at Boston, TF3244, flows into The Haven, a tidal arm of The Wash, near RSPB Frampton Marsh...
in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It was amalgamated with the civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
of Woodhall Spa
Woodhall Spa
Woodhall Spa is a civil parish and village in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England within a wooded area on the Southern edge of the Lincolnshire Wolds, about south-west of Horncastle and about east-south-east of Lincoln...
in 1987.
History
Kirkstead has its origins in a Cistercian monastery, Kirkstead AbbeyKirkstead Abbey
Kirkstead Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in Kirkstead, Lincolnshire, England.The monastery was founded in 1139 by Hugh Brito, , lord of Tattershall, and was originally colonised by an abbot and twelve monks from Fountains Abbey in Yorkshire...
(the name Kirkstead means "the site of a church" ) founded in 1139 by Hugh Brito, lord of Tattershall and originally colonised by an abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
and twelve monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
s from Fountains Abbey
Fountains Abbey
Fountains Abbey is near to Aldfield, approximately two miles southwest of Ripon in North Yorkshire, England. It is a ruined Cistercian monastery, founded in 1132. Fountains Abbey is one of the largest and best preserved Cistercian houses in England. It is a Grade I listed building and owned by the...
in Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
. It was around this abbey that the little settlement of Kirkstead grew. The abbey remained in existence until 1537, when it was dissolved and Richard Harrison (the last Abbot) and three of his monks were executed
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
by King Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
following their implication (probably unjustly) in the Lincolnshire Rising of the previous year.
The abbey and manor
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Kirkstead passed to the Duke of Suffolk
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, 1st Viscount Lisle, KG was the son of Sir William Brandon and Elizabeth Bruyn. Through his third wife Mary Tudor he was brother-in-law to Henry VIII. His father was the standard-bearer of Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond and was slain by Richard III in person at...
, Henry VIII's brother-in-law, and later to the Clintons, Earls of Lincoln
Earl of Lincoln
Earl of Lincoln is a title that has been created eight times in the Peerage of England.-Earls of Lincoln, First Creation :*William d'Aubigny, 1st Earl of Lincoln and 1st Earl of Arundel Earl of Lincoln is a title that has been created eight times in the Peerage of England.-Earls of Lincoln, First...
, who built a large country house
English country house
The English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a London house. This allowed to them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these people, the term distinguished between town and country...
. By 1791 that too had gone, and all that remains today is a dramatic crag of masonry - a fragment of the south transept wall of the abbey church and the earthworks of the vast complex of buildings that once surrounded it.
The church of St Leonard's Without, thus named as it was outside the gates of the abbey, stands in a field by the side of the ruins of the abbey. Built between 1230 and 1240 it is an excellent example of the Early English style
English Gothic architecture
English Gothic is the name of the architectural style that flourished in England from about 1180 until about 1520.-Introduction:As with the Gothic architecture of other parts of Europe, English Gothic is defined by its pointed arches, vaulted roofs, buttresses, large windows, and spires...
. Measuring only 12.8 metres (42 ft) by 5.8 metres (19 ft) it is up to "Cathedral standards" and may well have been built as a chantry
Chantry
Chantry is the English term for a fund established to pay for a priest to celebrate sung Masses for a specified purpose, generally for the soul of the deceased donor. Chantries were endowed with lands given by donors, the income from which maintained the chantry priest...
chapel in memory of Robert de Tattershall who died in 1212. After many centuries use as a church, it closed in 1877, when a Presbyterian congregation was evicted, and from 1883 "The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings
Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings
The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings was founded by William Morris, Philip Webb and J.J.Stevenson, and other notable members of the Pre Raphaelite brotherhood, in 1877, to oppose what they saw as the insensitive renovation of ancient buildings then occurring in Victorian...
" fought to save it from total decay. Eventually during 1913 and 1914 it was restored by the architect Weir.
Kirkstead remained an isolated hamlet
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
, but the area by the River Witham, 'Kirkstead Wharfs' developed as a locally important trading point on the canal system for goods being imported and exported in the local area, including coal.
With the opening in 1848 of the Lincoln to Boston line of the London and York Railway, a station was built here which was the nearest station to the increasingly fashionable spa town
Spa town
A spa town is a town situated around a mineral spa . Patrons resorted to spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits. The word comes from the Belgian town Spa. In continental Europe a spa was known as a ville d'eau...
of Woodhall Spa, 2 km (1.2 mi) away. The resulting carriage trade, carrying the gentry
Gentry
Gentry denotes "well-born and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past....
to and from the spa, lasted until 1855 when a branch line opened from Kirkstead Station, (which then became known as Woodhall Junction) to Woodhall Spa and Horncastle. Woodhall Spa and Horncastle stations were closed to passengers in 1954, and Woodhall Junction closed with the closure of its railway line in 1970.
The arrival of the railways greatly decreased the isolation of Kirkstead and the surrounding area. Kirkstead Wharfs was absorbed by the encroaching civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
of Woodhall Spa in 1894, and the rest was incorporated into it in 1987, so that Kirkstead is now the western part of Woodhall Spa between the village centre and the River Witham
River Witham
The River Witham is a river, almost entirely in the county of Lincolnshire, in the east of England. It rises south of Grantham close to South Witham, at SK8818, passes Lincoln at SK9771 and at Boston, TF3244, flows into The Haven, a tidal arm of The Wash, near RSPB Frampton Marsh...
.
The Kirkstead Bridge is a concrete arch bridge
Arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...
spanning the River Witham
River Witham
The River Witham is a river, almost entirely in the county of Lincolnshire, in the east of England. It rises south of Grantham close to South Witham, at SK8818, passes Lincoln at SK9771 and at Boston, TF3244, flows into The Haven, a tidal arm of The Wash, near RSPB Frampton Marsh...
at Kirkstead
Kirkstead
Kirkstead is an ancient village and former parish on the River Witham in Lincolnshire, England. It was amalgamated with the civil parish of Woodhall Spa in 1987.-History:...
in Woodhall Spa. It carries the B1191 as it runs from Horncastle to the A15 road just north of Dunsby St Andrew
Dunsby
Dunsby is a small village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of in Lincolnshire, England. It lies miles north from Bourne, just off the A15 on the western edge of the Lincolnshire Fens. In 2001 it has a population of 141....
and was finished and opened in 1968. The bridge replaced an existing swing bridge
Swing bridge
A swing bridge is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its centre of gravity, about which the turning span can then pivot horizontally as shown in the animated illustration to the right...
alongside it, which had itself replaced a ferry
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
which operated until the early 20th century.