St. Mary's Abbey, Winchester
Encyclopedia
St. Mary's Abbey, also known as Nunnaminster, was a Benedictine
nunnery in Winchester
, Hampshire
. It was founded at the close of the ninth century by Alfred the Great
and his queen Ealhswith
(who is buried here). The first buildings were completed by their son, Edward the Elder
. The first abbess
was Edward's daughter Edburga
. After Alfred's death Ealhswith retired to the monastery.
In 963 Bishop Ethelwold refounded the monastery and re-endowed it, imposing the stricter Benedictine rule.
The house stood between High Street and Colebroke Street and was known as Nunnaminster. According to the Domesday Book
the abbess held Lyss
, Froyle
, Leckford Abbess, Long Stoke, Timsbury, and Ovington
in Hampshire
; Coleshill in Berkshire
; and Urchfont
and All Cannings
in Wiltshire
. During the Civil War the monastery was burnt in the great fire of Winchester in 1141. The house became impoverished during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, but thanks to various grants and concessions it recovered its position and was in a healthy state at the time of the suppression.
The house was suppressed as part of the Dissolution of the Monasteries
in 1539, with pensions granted to the abbess
, prioress and nun
s.
Considerable remains of the buildings survived into the seventeenth century, but only certain watercourses survive into the present.
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
nunnery in 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...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
. It was founded at the close of the ninth century by Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great was King of Wessex from 871 to 899.Alfred is noted for his defence of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of southern England against the Vikings, becoming the only English monarch still to be accorded the epithet "the Great". Alfred was the first King of the West Saxons to style himself...
and his queen Ealhswith
Ealhswith
Ealhswith or Ealswitha was the daughter of a Mercian nobleman, Æthelred Mucil, Ealdorman of the Gaini. She was married in 868 to Alfred the Great, before he became king of Wessex. In accordance with ninth century West Saxon custom, she was not given the title of queen. -Life:Ealswith was the...
(who is buried here). The first buildings were completed by their son, Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder was an English king. He became king in 899 upon the death of his father, Alfred the Great. His court was at Winchester, previously the capital of Wessex...
. The first abbess
Abbess
An abbess is the female superior, or mother superior, of a community of nuns, often an abbey....
was Edward's daughter Edburga
Edburga
*Saint Edburga of Bicester*Saint Edburga of Minster-in-Thanet *Saint Edburga of Repton*Saint Edburga of Winchester, daughter of King Edward the Elder*Eadburh of Mercia*Eadburg, mother of Queen Ealhswith...
. After Alfred's death Ealhswith retired to the monastery.
In 963 Bishop Ethelwold refounded the monastery and re-endowed it, imposing the stricter Benedictine rule.
The house stood between High Street and Colebroke Street and was known as Nunnaminster. According to the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
the abbess held Lyss
Liss
Liss is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 3.3 miles northeast of Petersfield, on the A3 road, on the Hampshire/West Sussex border....
, Froyle
Froyle
Froyle, or to be more accurate, Upper and Lower Froyle, is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England...
, Leckford Abbess, Long Stoke, Timsbury, and Ovington
Ovington, Hampshire
Ovington, Hampshire is a village in the City of Winchester district of Hampshire, England. It lies three miles from its nearest town, New Alresford.-External links:*...
in Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
; Coleshill in Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
; and Urchfont
Urchfont
Urchfont is a small, rural village to the north of Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, about seven miles from the market town of Devizes. The civil parish includes the hamlets of Wedhampton and Lydeway...
and All Cannings
All Cannings
All Cannings pr Allcannings is a village and civil parish in the Vale of Pewsey in the English county of Wiltshire. The parish includes the nearby smaller settlement of Allington.-History:...
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. During the Civil War the monastery was burnt in the great fire of Winchester in 1141. The house became impoverished during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, but thanks to various grants and concessions it recovered its position and was in a healthy state at the time of the suppression.
The house was suppressed as part of 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 1539, with pensions granted to the abbess
Abbess
An abbess is the female superior, or mother superior, of a community of nuns, often an abbey....
, prioress and nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
s.
Considerable remains of the buildings survived into the seventeenth century, but only certain watercourses survive into the present.