Beauvale Priory Precinct Boundary Wall, Greasley, Nottinghamshire

Summary

The surviving section of the Precinct Boundary Wall of the Carthusian Priory at Beauvale in Nottinghamshire, built in 1343.

Description

A section of the former precinct wall to Beauvale Priory built in 1343, located at the eastern boundary of the site,10m to the north of the gatehouse's rear range.

MATERIALS
Coursed squared sandstone rubble, laid to varied course depths, with ashlar dressings to a single surviving doorway at its southern end.

DESCRIPTION
The section of wall is c.85m in length, surviving to a maximum height of c.2m at the south end, diminishing to 1.5m at the north end. At approximately 15m from the south end is a narrow rebated doorway with ashlar dressings. Along the length of the wall at c.3m intervals are small square openings, set below deep rubble lintels. The wall aligns with the east wall of the rear range of the gatehouse.

History

The Carthusian Order was founded in the C11, arriving in England in 1178 long after the establishment of other monastic orders in the country. Only 9 charter houses were founded here, the first being established in the C12 or C13. Carthusian settlements provided a community of contemplative monks with facilities for worship, accommodation and, to some extent, subsistence. Carthusian life was centred on solitude and favoured meditation over communal meeting. In taking this approach to monastic life the Carthusians were unique amongst orders in the West. In contrast to other monastic establishments, the components of the charterhouse were devoted to individual accommodation in preference to communal buildings. Most notable were the individual cells and gardens built for each monk, arranged around a great cloister. In addition to these cells, each monastery had a main church, workshops, guesthouses, kitchens and other buildings, enclosed within some form of boundary.

Like other monastic communities, the Carthusians were inextricably woven into the fabric of medieval society, acting not only as centres of worship, learning and charity, but also, because of their vast land holdings, as centres of immense wealth and political influence.

Beauvale Priory was founded in 1343 by Sir Nicholas de Cantilupe, who was given permission by Edward III to establish a priory for the Carthusian Order at Beauvale to accommodate a prior and twelve monks. The foundation charter was signed in 1343 granting the priory 300 acres of land, properties and further land in the nearby villages of Greasley and Selston, and an endowment of £100 yearly. This was to secure the construction of ‘a fit church and houses sufficient for a prior and twelve monks’ with permission to quarry stone for the buildings and to dig marl for enriching the farmland.

The Priory was centred on the Priory Church, the first permanent building to be erected on the site, with a chapter house, prior’s house, cloister and twelve cells, refectory, lay brothers quarters and cloister, gatehouse and lodgings and a precinct wall enclosing the priory. Sir Nicholas died in 1356, only 13 years after the foundation and by 1375, with the death of his grandchildren without heirs, the annual endowment ceased. By this time, the Priory was already in a parlous state. The Etwall Charter of 1370 refers to the plight of the monks and the condition of the site, aid being needed for ‘their sustentation and of the reparation of their priory which is said to be ruinous’.

A far greater threat to the site was posed by the Reformation, with Beauvale finding itself in the forefront of the confrontation between Henry VIII and the Papacy. Following the Act of Succession in 1534, and Henry’s marriage to Anne Boleyn, the king assumed the title of Supreme Head on earth of the English Church. In 1535 it became high treason to deny that the king held this title and accompanying authority in ecclesiastical matters. Soon after the passing of the Act of Succession, the Carthusian Order fell under scrutiny by royal commissioners and required to confirm adherence to the new law which legitimised the succession to the throne of children born to Boleyn. John Houghton, who had been prior of Beauvale before becoming prior of the London charterhouse, and Robert Lawrence, his successor at Beauvale, were tried and executed for treason in 1535. From that moment Beauvale was increasingly at risk, with a layman installed to replace Prior Lawrence. As the dissolution of monastic holdings gathered pace, Beauvale was surrendered to the Royal Commissioners on 18th July 1539.

In 1539, Beauvale was granted to Sir William Hussey of Kneesall Park in Nottinghamshire, but almost immediately, he too was tried and executed for treason, and Beauvale then passed to his son, William, in 1541. From that date onwards, Beauvale passed through a succession of owners. A description of the Beauvale estate in 1707 refers to ‘repairing, upholding supporting and maintaining the said monastery, Grange house and other houses’ together with other buildings and ‘a water mill with appurtenances’. This description suggests that at the time, a substantial remnant of the monastic site remained in use. From 1805 until 1915, the estate was owned by the Cowper family and remained a tenanted farm holding until the late 1990’s when it was sold to the present owners.

In 1908, a limited area of the Priory site was excavated by the Thoroton Society, leaving the greater part of the site to the west of the surviving buildings undisturbed. In 1995, a geophysical survey of the site took place, which provided enhanced information about the layout of the site, including the cloister and surrounding house platforms, earthworks and ponds. Beauvale was one of the earliest sites to receive statutory protection as an Ancient Monument, on the 10th April 1915, under the ground-breaking legislation of 1913. Various phases of research, consolidation and restoration have taken place over many years and these are well documented in the Nottinghamshire Historic Environment Record (HER) and in English Heritage's Pastscape database (http://www.pastscape.org.uk/) and will not be repeated in detail here.

Reasons for Listing

The section of the former precinct wall to Beauvale Priory built in 1343 is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* Historic interest: Beauvale was a Carthusian charterhouse established in 1343. Following the Act of Succession in 1534 two of its priors, John Houghton and Robert Lawrence were executed for refusing to acknowledge the monarch as the Head of the Church. They were both canonised in 1970;

* Architectural interest: the surviving section of the Precinct Boundary Wall forms an important component of the surviving complex of monastic buildings and structures.

* Rarity: As one of only nine Carthusian charterhouses to be established in medieval England.

* Group value: the surviving section of the Precinct Boundary Wall forms part of the standing remains of the priory site which also includes the Church Walls and the Prior's Lodgings (Listed Grade II*) and the Gatehouse Range (Listed Grade II). All of the structures are included within a Scheduled Monument (Beauvale Carthusian Priory, National Heritage List entry 1002920).

External Links

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.