Ulverscroft Priory
Encyclopedia
Earl of Leicester
The title Earl of Leicester was created in the 12th century in the Peerage of England , and is currently a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1837.-Early creations:...
in 1134 as a priory
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...
for eremites
Hermit
A hermit is a person who lives, to some degree, in seclusion from society.In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Christian who lives the eremitic life out of a religious conviction, namely the Desert Theology of the Old Testament .In the...
of the Order of St Augustine. It was closely connected with the Lords Ferrars of Groby
Groby
Groby is a large English village in the county of Leicestershire, to the north west of the city of Leicester. The population at the time of the 2001 census was 7,301.-Description:...
. The last Prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
was Geoffrey Whalley. On the suppression of the Priory in 1539, Whalley was granted a pension of £20. The Priory estate at this time comprised 957 acres (3.9 km²) with a further 700 acres (2.8 km²) in Charnwood Forest
Charnwood Forest
Charnwood Forest is an upland tract in north-western Leicestershire, England, bounded by Leicester, Loughborough, and Coalville. The area is undulating, rocky and picturesque, with barren areas. It also has some extensive tracts of woodland; its elevation is generally 600 ft and upwards, the area...
, 300 cattle, 1,000 sheep and 60 swine. Seven men were employed felling and carting timber for the Priory brewery.
The present farmhouse incorporates the Prior's lodging and refectory; parts of the church and church tower remain. Thornton
Thornton, Leicestershire
Thornton is a village in Leicestershire, England. The village is within the civil parish of Bagworth and Thornton. It is a linear village lying along a scarp overlooking Thornton Reservoir....
Church has the Priory door. The site was purchased in 1927 by Sir William Lindsay Everard
William Lindsay Everard
Sir William Lindsay Everard was a brewer, politician, and philanthropist from Leicestershire, United Kingdom. As the founder and supporter of the Ratcliffe Aerodrome, Sir Lindsay was a pioneer aviator, knighted for his crucial efforts in World War II with the Air Transport Auxiliary...
, preserving the decaying ruins from total destruction.