Binham Priory
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
{{Infobox building
| name = Binham Priory
| image = BinhamPriory.JPG
| caption = The Priory Church of St Mary and the Holy Cross
| map_type = United Kingdom Norfolk
| map_caption = Location within Norfolk
| architectural_style =
| building_type = Priory
| coordinates = {{coord|52.91997|N|0.94523|E|region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(TF981399)|display=inline,title}}
| completion_date = Mid-Thirteenth Century
| owner = Managed by English Heritage
| website = [http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/nav.12298 Binham Priory English Heritage]
}}
St Mary's Priory, Binham, or Binham Priory, is a ruined Benedictine priory located in the village of Binham in the English county of Norfolk.
Today the nave of the much larger priory church has become the Church of St. Mary and the Holy Cross and is still used as a place of worship. The remains of the priory are in the care of English Heritage.{{cite web |url=http://www.norfolkcoast.co.uk/articles/binhampriory.htm |title=Binham Priory |publisher=NorfolkCoast.co.uk |access-date=10 June 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060720172939/http://www.norfolkcoast.co.uk/articles/binhampriory.htm |archive-date=20 July 2006 }} The abbey's west face is the first example in England of gothic bar tracery, predating Westminster Abbey by a decade.Champion, M. (2015). Medieval graffiti: the lost voices of England's churches. Random House. {{ISBN|0-091-96041-X}} p104-108 According to English Heritage, Binham Priory's "history is one of almost continuous scandal."{{Cite web|url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/binham-priory/history/|title=History of Binham Priory|website=English Heritage}} Many of its priors proved to be unscrupulous and irresponsible.
History
{{Further|Simon Binham|William Binham}}
File:Binham Prior Ruins 2022.jpg
Binham Priory was founded in 1091 as a cell of St Albans Abbey at the behest of Peter de Valognes, who was granted the manor of Binham after the Norman Conquest.{{Cite web |date=2018-06-10 |title=Foundation of the Priory {{!}} Binham Priory |url=https://binhampriory.org/history-2/articles-documents-registers-burial-memorials/foundation-of-the-priory/ |access-date=2024-11-03 }} The Priory took around 150 years to be completed and was finished in the mid-Thirteenth Century.{{Cite web |date=2018-06-05 |title=Historical Notes {{!}} Binham Priory |url=https://binhampriory.org/history-2/historical-notes/ |access-date=2024-11-03 }} Originally it had 8 monks, rising to 13 or 14 in the 14th century before falling back to 6 immediately before its suppression 1539.{{cite web |title=Binham Priory |url=http://www.norfarchtrust.org.uk/binham |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121026025008/http://www.norfarchtrust.org.uk/binham |archive-date=26 October 2012 |access-date=14 October 2012 |publisher=The Norfolk Archaeological Trust}}
In 1212, Binham Priory was besieged by Robert Fitzwalter over an argument between Fitzwalter and the Abbey of St. Albans. The siege was lifted by the forces of King John I.
In 1285, King Edward I visited the priory, likely whilst on pilgrimage to Walsingham Priory.
In 1381, the records of the priory were burned during the Great Revolt, this action was led by a local man, John Lister, who was an organiser of the rebellion in Norfolk.
A Ley tunnel is said to run from the buildings to an unknown destination and it is reported that many years ago a fiddler decided to explore these passages; he could be heard for some distance before suddenly ceasing. The fiddler was never seen again.Westwood, Jennifer (1985), Albion. A Guide to Legendary Britain. Pub. Grafton Books, London. {{ISBN|0-246-11789-3}}. P. 400.
In 1539, most of the priory was destroyed under the orders of Henry VIII in the dissolution of the monasteries. The wealth of the priory was gifted to a local nobleman, Sir Thomas Paston, who dismantled some of the buildings to provide stone for a house in Wells-next-the-Sea. Further demolitions were made by Paston's grandson, Edward, who planned to build a new house in Binham but eventually gave up on the project.{{Cite web |title=History of Binham Priory |url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/binham-priory/history/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=English Heritage}}
Present day
The priory church continues to be used as the parish church. As the priory was dedicated to Mary and the church to the Holy Cross, it is called The Priory Church of St Mary and the Holy Cross.{{Cite web|url=https://binhampriory.org/history-2/external-history/|title=External History | Binham Priory|date=20 May 2018}}
The Priory ruins are in the care of English Heritage and is Grade I listed.{{NHLE |desc=Binham Priory, Binham |num=1014862 |access-date=2024-11-03 }} Further buildings in the area, such as the priory gatehouse, are also Grade I listed.{{NHLE |desc=GATEHOUSE AT BINHAM PRIORY, Binham |num=1049509 |access-date=2024-11-03 }}
Burials
- Peter de Valognes and wife Albreda de Saint-Saveur
- Roger de Valognes (their son) and his wife Agnes FitzJohn
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|Binham Priory}}
- {{oscoor gbx|TF981399}}
- [http://www.binhampriory.org The Priory Church of St Mary and the Holy Cross]
- [https://www.norfarchtrust.org.uk/?s=binham The Norfolk Archaeological Trust: Binham Priory]
- [http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/binham/binham.htm Norfolk Churches: Binham Priory]
{{Benedictine houses of England and Wales}}
Category:Benedictine monasteries in England
Category:English Heritage sites in Norfolk
Category:Monasteries in Norfolk
Category:Christian monasteries established in the 1090s
Category:11th-century establishments in England
Category:1539 disestablishments in England
Category:Grade I listed buildings in Norfolk
Category:Monasteries dissolved under the English Reformation