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{{Short description|Grade I listed priory in St Osyth, Essex, England, UK}}
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'''St. Osyth&#39;s Abbey''' (or '''St Osyth's Priory''') was a house of [[Augustinians|Augustinian]] canons in the parish of [[St. Osyth]], Chich, in [[Essex]], [[England]]. Founded by the Richard de Belmeis, Bishop of London, ''circa'' 1121, it became one of the largest monasteries in Essex and was dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul as well as [[St. Osyth]].<ref>J. C. Dickinson, ''The Origins of the Austin Canons and their introduction into England'' (1950), 112-113.</ref> Bishop Richard obtained the arm bone of St. Osyth from Aylesbury for the monastic church and granted the canons the parish church of St. Osyth.
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}


{{Infobox historic site
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The monastery began as a priory, possibly a daughter house of Holy Trinity, Aldgate. The first prior of St. Osyth's was [[William de Corbeil]], who was elected archbishop of Canterbury in 1123 and who crowned [[Stephen, King of England|King Stephen]] in 1135.<ref>John Timbs and Alexander Gunn, ''Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales - Their Legendary Lore and Popular History,'' (London: 1925), 216-218</ref> [[William of Malmesbury]] spoke in praise of the piety and learning of the canons at St. Osyth's in the twelfth century. <ref>William of Malmesbury, ''Gesta pontificum Anglorum''</ref> One of the second generation of canons there was [[William de Vere]], later bishop of Hereford, who wrote a Latin life of St. Osyth in which he mentions that his mother Adeliza, daughter of [[Gilbert fitz Richard]] of Clare, had been a corodian at the abbey for twenty years of her widowhood.
| name = St Osyth Priory
| native_name =
| native_language =
| image = St Osyth Priory - geograph.org.uk - 2123461.jpg
| image_size = 300
| caption = St Osyth Priory
| type =
| locmapin = Essex
⚫
| coordinates = {{coord|51.7992|1.0749|region:GB|display=inline,title |format=dms}}
| gbgridref =
| location = [[St Osyth]]
| area = [[Essex]]
| built =
| architect =
| architecture =
| governing_body =
| owner =
| designation1 = Grade I
| designation1_offname = St Osyth's Priory: The Abbot's Lodging and South Wing, the Darcy Clock Tower and C18 House (formerly listed as the Convalescent Home).
| designation1_date = 21 February 1950
| designation1_number = {{Listed building England|1337158}}
| designation2 = Grade I
| designation2_offname = St Osyth's Priory ruined east ranges of the Darcy House including the Tower and Chapel
| designation2_date = 21 February 1950
| designation2_number = {{Listed building England|1337159}}
| designation3 = Grade I
| designation3_offname = St Osyth's Priory, Gatehouse and East and West flanking Ranges
| designation3_date = 21 February 1950
| designation3_number = {{Listed building England|1111495}}
| designation4 = Grade II*
| designation4_offname = St Osyth's Priory, Tithe Barn adjoining the west range of Gatehouse
| designation4_date = 21 February 1950
| designation4_number = {{Listed building England|1308972}}
| designation5 = Grade II*
| designation5_offname = St Osyth's Priory: West Barn and Baliffs Cottage
| designation5_date = 21 February 1950
| designation5_number = {{Listed building England|1166310}}
}}


[[File:The Priory in St Osyth - geograph.org.uk - 8601.jpg|thumb|St Osyth's Priory Gatehouse<ref name=NHLE-1111495/>]]
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A charter of [[Henry II of England|King Henry II]] confirmed the right of the canons of St. Osyth's to elect their abbot and to hold a market every Sunday at Chich in the later 12th century.
[[File:St Osyth's Priory Gatehouse, south upper.jpg|thumb|The upper part of the gatehouse]]
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'''St Osyth's Abbey''' (originally and still commonly known as '''St Osyth's Priory''') was a house of Augustine [[Canons Regular]] in the [[St Osyth|parish of St Osyth]] (then named Chich) in [[Essex]], [[England]] in use from the 12th to 16th centuries. Founded by [[Richard de Belmeis]], Bishop of London, {{circa|1121}}, it became one of the largest religious houses in Essex. It was dedicated to Saints [[Saint Peter|Peter]] and [[Paul of Tarsus|Paul]] as well as [[Osgyth|St Osyth]] (Osith), a [[royal saint]] and virgin martyr.<ref name="C. Dickinson, 1950">J. C. Dickinson, ''The Origins of the Austin Canons and their introduction into England'' (1950), 112-113.</ref> Bishop Richard obtained the arm bone of St Osyth from [[Aylesbury]] for the monastic church and granted the canons the parish church of St Osyth.


⚫
The foundation began as a [[priory]], probably populated first by canons from [[Holy Trinity Priory, Aldgate|Holy Trinity, Aldgate]].<ref name="C. Dickinson, 1950"/> The first prior of St Osyth's was [[William de Corbeil]], who was elected [[archbishop of Canterbury]] in 1123 and who crowned [[Stephen, King of England|King Stephen]] in 1135.<ref>John Timbs and Alexander Gunn, ''Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales - Their Legendary Lore and Popular History,'' (London: 1925), 216-218</ref> The priory was converted into an [[abbey]] in the mid-12th century.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/essex/vol2/pp157-162 |title=Houses of Austin canons: Abbey of Chich or St Osyth's &#124; British History Online |website=www.british-history.ac.uk |access-date=6 November 2019}}</ref>
The monastery was dissolved in 1539 by [[King Henry VIII]], at which time there was a prior and sixteen canons. The king granted it to his minister [[Thomas Cromwell]], but on his fall from favor the abbey and its estates were returned to crown possession. In the reign of [[King Edward VI]] they were sold to Sir Thomas Darcy for just under £400.<ref>''Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales,'' 218-219.</ref> The gatehouse, dating from the late 15th century, is the most significant remnant of the original monastic structures still standing. The exterior is a fine example of decorative flint work.

In the ''[[Gesta Pontificum Anglorum]]'', [[William of Malmesbury]] spoke in praise of the piety and learning of the canons at St Osyth's in the twelfth century.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Thomson|first1=R. M.|last2=Winterbottom|first2=M.|title=William of Malmesbury: Gesta Pontificum Anglorum: Volume I: Text and Translation|date=2007|publisher=Clarendon Press|location=Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-820770-2|page=233}}</ref> One of the second generation of canons there was [[William de Vere]], later [[bishop of Hereford]], who wrote a Latin ''Life of St Osyth'',<ref>The work is lost, only extracts survived.<br />{{cite book|author=Susan Janet Ridyard|title=The Royal Saints of Anglo-Saxon England: A Study of West Saxon and East Anglian Cults|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rj49AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA135|year=1988|publisher=CUP Archive|isbn=978-0-521-30772-7|page=135}}</ref> in which he mentions that his mother Adeliza, daughter of [[Gilbert fitz Richard]] of [[Clare, Suffolk|Clare]], had been a [[corrodian]] at the abbey for twenty years of her widowhood.

⚫
A charter of [[Henry II of England|King Henry II]] confirmed the right of the canons of St Osyth's to elect their abbot and to hold a market every Sunday at Chich in the later 12th century.

John Depyng, prior of [[St. Botolph's Priory|St. Botolph's]] was made abbot of St Osyth's in 1434, and took with him goods of considerable value belonging to the priory. He never returned these, and after his death St Botolph's brought an apparently unsuccessful lawsuit in Chancery against St Osyth's for their recovery.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=39844|title=Houses of Austin canons: Priory of St Botolph, Colchester &#124; British History Online}}</ref>

During the [[Suppression of the Monasteries]], the religious group was dissolved by [[King Henry VIII]] in 1539, at which time there were a prior and sixteen canons. The king granted it to his minister [[Thomas Cromwell]], but on his fall from favour, the abbey and its estates were returned to crown possession. In the reign of [[King Edward VI]] they were sold to Sir [[Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy of Chiche|Thomas Darcy]] for just under £400.<ref>''Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales,'' 218-219.</ref> The gatehouse, dating from the late 15th century, is the most significant remnant of the original monastic structures still standing. The exterior is a fine example of decorative [[Flint#As a building material|flint work]]. Five parts of the priory are Grade I [[listed building]]s.<ref name=NHLE-1111495>{{National Heritage List for England |num=1111495 |desc=St Osyth's Priory, Gatehouse and east and west flanking ranges |grade=I|accessdate=25 April 2017}}</ref><ref name=NHLE-1146545>{{National Heritage List for England |num=1146545 |desc=St Osyth's Priory the Darcy Tower also known as Abbot's Tower and vaulting to west |grade=I|accessdate=25 April 2017}}</ref><ref name=NHLE-1166377>{{National Heritage List for England |num=1166377 |desc=St Osyth's Priory the Chapel of St Osyth and ruins attached to north |grade=I|accessdate=25 April 2017}}</ref><ref name=NHLE-1337158>{{National Heritage List for England |num=1337158 |desc=St Osyth's Priory: The Abbot's Lodging and South Wing, the Darcy Clock Tower and C18 House (formerly listed as the Convalescent Home) |grade=I|accessdate=25 April 2017}}</ref><ref name=NHLE-1337159>{{National Heritage List for England |num=1337159 |desc=St Osyth's Priory ruined east ranges of the Darcy House including the Tower and Chapel |grade=I|accessdate=25 April 2017}}</ref>

On 11 November 1884 the building was consecrated as a [[masonic lodge]] (no. 2063),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://stosythspriory2063.org/history/|title=St. Osyth's Priory Lodge No. 2063/history}}</ref> one of the principal officers being the then owner, Sir John Henry Johnson. The priory was later owned by the writer [[Somerset de Chair]], from 1954 until his death in 1995. It stood in for St Anselm's Theological College in the BBC's miniseries adaptation of [[P. D. James]]' ''[[Death in Holy Orders]]'' in 2003.

==Burials==
*[[Richard de Belmeis I]]
*Adeliza de Clare de Vere, mother of [[Aubrey de Vere, 1st Earl of Oxford]]
*Lucy Young Rochford, wife of [[William Nassau de Zuylestein, 4th Earl of Rochford]]


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
* [[John Watney|Watney, John]], ''Some Account of St. Osyth's Priory, Essex, and its Inhabitants'' (Waterlow & Sons, 1871)
* ''The Somerset de Chair Collection at St. Osyth's Priory, Essex'' (1971) Souvenir Guidebook


==External links==
==External links==
*[http://www.mspong.org/picturesque/osyth.html Picturesque England]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20040705040044/http://www.mspong.org/picturesque/osyth.html Picturesque England]
*B/W Drawing of the gateway: {{cite book|title=A Day in St Osyth's Priory|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WmwJAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA486|year=1866|page=487}} (from the magazine [[Once A Week (magazine)|''Once A Week'']])

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{{coord|51.7992|1.0749|type:landmark_region:GB|display=title}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Osyths Priory}}
[[Category:Monasteries in Essex]]
[[Category:Monasteries in Essex]]
[[Category:1120s establishments in England]]
[[Category:1120s establishments in England]]
[[Category:Christian monasteries established in the 12th century]]
[[Category:Christian monasteries established in the 1120s]]
[[Category:1539 disestablishments in England]]
[[Category:1539 disestablishments in England]]
[[Category:Augustinian monasteries in England]]

[[Category:Grade I listed churches in Essex]]

[[Category:Grade I listed monasteries]]
{{Essex-struct-stub}}
[[Category:Grade II listed parks and gardens in Essex]]
{{UK-Christian-monastery-stub}}
[[Category:St Osyth]]

Latest revision as of 06:20, 28 November 2024

St Osyth Priory
St Osyth Priory
LocationSt Osyth
Coordinates51°47′57″N 1°04′30″E / 51.7992°N 1.0749°E / 51.7992; 1.0749
AreaEssex
Listed Building – Grade I
Official nameSt Osyth's Priory: The Abbot's Lodging and South Wing, the Darcy Clock Tower and C18 House (formerly listed as the Convalescent Home).
Designated21 February 1950
Reference no.1337158
Listed Building – Grade I
Official nameSt Osyth's Priory ruined east ranges of the Darcy House including the Tower and Chapel
Designated21 February 1950
Reference no.1337159
Listed Building – Grade I
Official nameSt Osyth's Priory, Gatehouse and East and West flanking Ranges
Designated21 February 1950
Reference no.1111495
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official nameSt Osyth's Priory, Tithe Barn adjoining the west range of Gatehouse
Designated21 February 1950
Reference no.1308972
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official nameSt Osyth's Priory: West Barn and Baliffs Cottage
Designated21 February 1950
Reference no.1166310
St Osyth's Priory is located in Essex
St Osyth's Priory
Location of St Osyth Priory in Essex
St Osyth's Priory Gatehouse[1]
The upper part of the gatehouse

St Osyth's Abbey (originally and still commonly known as St Osyth's Priory) was a house of Augustine Canons Regular in the parish of St Osyth (then named Chich) in Essex, England in use from the 12th to 16th centuries. Founded by Richard de Belmeis, Bishop of London, c. 1121, it became one of the largest religious houses in Essex. It was dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul as well as St Osyth (Osith), a royal saint and virgin martyr.[2] Bishop Richard obtained the arm bone of St Osyth from Aylesbury for the monastic church and granted the canons the parish church of St Osyth.

The foundation began as a priory, probably populated first by canons from Holy Trinity, Aldgate.[2] The first prior of St Osyth's was William de Corbeil, who was elected archbishop of Canterbury in 1123 and who crowned King Stephen in 1135.[3] The priory was converted into an abbey in the mid-12th century.[4]

In the Gesta Pontificum Anglorum, William of Malmesbury spoke in praise of the piety and learning of the canons at St Osyth's in the twelfth century.[5] One of the second generation of canons there was William de Vere, later bishop of Hereford, who wrote a Latin Life of St Osyth,[6] in which he mentions that his mother Adeliza, daughter of Gilbert fitz Richard of Clare, had been a corrodian at the abbey for twenty years of her widowhood.

A charter of King Henry II confirmed the right of the canons of St Osyth's to elect their abbot and to hold a market every Sunday at Chich in the later 12th century.

John Depyng, prior of St. Botolph's was made abbot of St Osyth's in 1434, and took with him goods of considerable value belonging to the priory. He never returned these, and after his death St Botolph's brought an apparently unsuccessful lawsuit in Chancery against St Osyth's for their recovery.[7]

During the Suppression of the Monasteries, the religious group was dissolved by King Henry VIII in 1539, at which time there were a prior and sixteen canons. The king granted it to his minister Thomas Cromwell, but on his fall from favour, the abbey and its estates were returned to crown possession. In the reign of King Edward VI they were sold to Sir Thomas Darcy for just under £400.[8] The gatehouse, dating from the late 15th century, is the most significant remnant of the original monastic structures still standing. The exterior is a fine example of decorative flint work. Five parts of the priory are Grade I listed buildings.[1][9][10][11][12]

On 11 November 1884 the building was consecrated as a masonic lodge (no. 2063),[13] one of the principal officers being the then owner, Sir John Henry Johnson. The priory was later owned by the writer Somerset de Chair, from 1954 until his death in 1995. It stood in for St Anselm's Theological College in the BBC's miniseries adaptation of P. D. James' Death in Holy Orders in 2003.

Burials

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Historic England. "St Osyth's Priory, Gatehouse and east and west flanking ranges (Grade I) (1111495)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  2. ^ a b J. C. Dickinson, The Origins of the Austin Canons and their introduction into England (1950), 112-113.
  3. ^ John Timbs and Alexander Gunn, Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales - Their Legendary Lore and Popular History, (London: 1925), 216-218
  4. ^ "Houses of Austin canons: Abbey of Chich or St Osyth's | British History Online". www.british-history.ac.uk. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
  5. ^ Thomson, R. M.; Winterbottom, M. (2007). William of Malmesbury: Gesta Pontificum Anglorum: Volume I: Text and Translation. Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 233. ISBN 978-0-19-820770-2.
  6. ^ The work is lost, only extracts survived.
    Susan Janet Ridyard (1988). The Royal Saints of Anglo-Saxon England: A Study of West Saxon and East Anglian Cults. CUP Archive. p. 135. ISBN 978-0-521-30772-7.
  7. ^ "Houses of Austin canons: Priory of St Botolph, Colchester | British History Online".
  8. ^ Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales, 218-219.
  9. ^ Historic England. "St Osyth's Priory the Darcy Tower also known as Abbot's Tower and vaulting to west (Grade I) (1146545)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  10. ^ Historic England. "St Osyth's Priory the Chapel of St Osyth and ruins attached to north (Grade I) (1166377)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  11. ^ Historic England. "St Osyth's Priory: The Abbot's Lodging and South Wing, the Darcy Clock Tower and C18 House (formerly listed as the Convalescent Home) (Grade I) (1337158)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  12. ^ Historic England. "St Osyth's Priory ruined east ranges of the Darcy House including the Tower and Chapel (Grade I) (1337159)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  13. ^ "St. Osyth's Priory Lodge No. 2063/history".

Further reading

[edit]
  • Watney, John, Some Account of St. Osyth's Priory, Essex, and its Inhabitants (Waterlow & Sons, 1871)
  • The Somerset de Chair Collection at St. Osyth's Priory, Essex (1971) Souvenir Guidebook
[edit]
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