Haverholme Priory
Encyclopedia
Haverholme Priory was a monastery
situated 4 miles (6.4 km) north-east of Sleaford
, Lincolnshire
, near Anwick
.
founded the only English order of the Cistercian monks, who were given Haverholme Priory, by Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln, located between the villages of Anwick
and Ewerby
in Lincolnshire
. The Cistercians later sold the monastery to Gilbert.
across the River Slea
at Ewerby Waith. They were however summoned to account in 1316 when it fell into disrepair. They were summoned again in 1360 when Alice Everingham, daughter of John de Everingham, who was supposed to have taken vows, fled from the Priory, only to be hunted down and recaptured. She complained to the Bishop of the time that she had never taken vows and she was being held against her will, so he ordered her to be released.
It is rumoured that Thomas Becket
hid there during one of his arguments with the King.
dissolved the Priory and sold it to George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea
and 5th Earl of Nottingham, who rebuilt it in 1830. It was used as a family home by the Finch Hatton family for almost a century but by the early 1920s it was up for sale. Haverholme was finally sold in 1926 to an American woman who had most of it dismantled, stone by stone, to be rebuilt in America. The cargo was on the dock in Liverpool when the buyer became a victim in a train crash. Eventually the stones, never shipped to America, were used to build new docks.
One casualty of this was the Sleaford Canal locks, which also fell into disuse, effectively closing the canal.
.
Ghostly footsteps have reportedly been heard around the ruins, and Lord Halifax claimed it was the most haunted place in England.
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
situated 4 miles (6.4 km) north-east of Sleaford
Sleaford
Sleaford is a town in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It is located thirteen miles northeast of Grantham, seventeen miles west of Boston, and nineteen miles south of Lincoln, and had a total resident population of around 14,500 in 6,167 households at the time...
, Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, near Anwick
Anwick
Anwick is a small village in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, north east of Sleaford on the A153 between Sleaford and Billinghay.-History:Two glacial erratic boulders, the Drake Stones, lie next to the churchyard....
.
Foundation
Gilbert of SempringhamGilbert of Sempringham
Saint Gilbert of Sempringham became the only Englishman to found a conventual order, mainly because the abbot of Cîteaux declined his request to assist him in helping a group of women living with lay brothers and sisters, in 1148...
founded the only English order of the Cistercian monks, who were given Haverholme Priory, by Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln, located between the villages of Anwick
Anwick
Anwick is a small village in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, north east of Sleaford on the A153 between Sleaford and Billinghay.-History:Two glacial erratic boulders, the Drake Stones, lie next to the churchyard....
and Ewerby
Ewerby
Ewerby is a village in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It lies north-east from Sleaford and south from Anwick. The hamlet of Ewerby Thorpe lies to the east from Ewerby....
in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
. The Cistercians later sold the monastery to Gilbert.
Gilbertine operation
The Gilbertines also inherited the responsibility for keeping the neighbouring fens drained, and to maintain a foot ferry to SleafordSleaford
Sleaford is a town in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It is located thirteen miles northeast of Grantham, seventeen miles west of Boston, and nineteen miles south of Lincoln, and had a total resident population of around 14,500 in 6,167 households at the time...
across the River Slea
River Slea
The River Slea is an 18-mile long tributary of the River Witham, in Lincolnshire, England. In 1872 the river was described as "a never-ending source of pure water", and was a trout river renowned throughout the East coast of England...
at Ewerby Waith. They were however summoned to account in 1316 when it fell into disrepair. They were summoned again in 1360 when Alice Everingham, daughter of John de Everingham, who was supposed to have taken vows, fled from the Priory, only to be hunted down and recaptured. She complained to the Bishop of the time that she had never taken vows and she was being held against her will, so he ordered her to be released.
It is rumoured that 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...
hid there during one of his arguments with the King.
Dissolution and subsequent history
Henry VIIIHenry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
dissolved the Priory and sold it to George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea
George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea
George William Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea, 5th Earl of Nottingham , politician.Hatton, born at Kirby Hall, Northamptonshire, on 19 May 1791, was grandson of Edward Finch-Hatton, and son of George Finch-Hatton of Eastwell Park, near Ashford, Kent, M.P...
and 5th Earl of Nottingham, who rebuilt it in 1830. It was used as a family home by the Finch Hatton family for almost a century but by the early 1920s it was up for sale. Haverholme was finally sold in 1926 to an American woman who had most of it dismantled, stone by stone, to be rebuilt in America. The cargo was on the dock in Liverpool when the buyer became a victim in a train crash. Eventually the stones, never shipped to America, were used to build new docks.
One casualty of this was the Sleaford Canal locks, which also fell into disuse, effectively closing the canal.
Present state
The present ruin is the remains of a Gothic building built around 1835 by H.E. Kendall, itself a rebuild of an earlier house dating from 1780, and now a Grade II listed building and a designated Ancient MonumentAncient monument
An ancient monument is an early historical structure or monument worthy of preservation and study due to archaeological or heritage interest. In the United Kingdom it is a legal term, differing from the American term National Monument in being far more numerous and always man-made...
.
Ghostly footsteps have reportedly been heard around the ruins, and Lord Halifax claimed it was the most haunted place in England.