Woodspring Priory
Encyclopedia
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...
beside the Severn Estuary
River Severn
The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...
about 3 miles (5 km) north-east of Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare is a seaside resort, town and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, which is within the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is located on the Bristol Channel coast, south west of Bristol, spanning the coast between the bounding high ground of Worlebury...
, North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
. It was founded in the early thirteenth century, and dedicated to Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion...
(the founder was a grandson of Reginald Fitzurse, one of Becket's murderers). After 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...
, the priory was converted into a farmhouse. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade I listed building. It is now owned by the Landmark Trust
Landmark Trust
The Landmark Trust is a British building conservation charity, founded in 1965 by Sir John and Lady Smith, that rescues buildings of historic interest or architectural merit and then gives them a new life by making them available for holiday rental...
and rented out as holiday accommodation. There is also a small museum on the site with photographs and information about the history of the priory and its renovation by the Landmark Trust.
The 15th-century barn, east cloister wall, farmhouse range, gatehouse, gates and mounting block, infirmary, and west wall are also listed buildings.
Woodspring Priory is near the scenic limestone promontory of Sand Point
Sand Point, Somerset
Sand Point in Somerset is the peninsula stretching out from Middle Hope, which lies to the north of the village of Kewstoke, and the stretch of coastline called Sand Bay. It is owned by the National Trust and is a popular place for walking...
otherwise known as Middle Hope, owned by the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
. The priory gave its name to the Woodspring District of the former county of Avon
Avon (county)
Avon was, from 1974 to 1996, a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England.The county was named after the River Avon, which runs through the area. It was formed from parts of the historic counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset, together with the City of Bristol...
, and the Woodspring parliamentary constituency
Woodspring (UK Parliament constituency)
Woodspring was, from 1983 until 2010, a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
of North Somerset.
External links
- Woodspring Priory - Landmark Trust
- Image on Geograph UK
- Outside image of the Priory
- Woodspring Priory - history and photos
- Visit to Woodspring Priory
