Colne Priory
The Priory and Convent of Earl's Colne was founded in 1111 by Aubrey de Vere and his wife Beatrice.
THe image of the building on this page is not of the Priory but the Prodigy House that was built at
its site after its dissolution.
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Colne Priory at Earls Colne, Essex was a Benedictine priory, initially a dependent cell of Abingdon Abbey,
Berkshire (now in Oxfordshire).
It was founded by Aubrey de Vere (I?) and his wife Beatrice in or before
1111.
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The establishment of reiigious houses in 12th and 13th Centuries England was not uncommon. Colne Priory
was founded by followers of the Benedictine Order as were Walden Abbey (Audley End, Saffron Walden - founded
by Geofrey de Mandeville - (1136-1143).
Clare Priory and Leez Priory are Augustinian and were founded in 1248 and 1220.
Chicksands Priory was founded by Rohse de Vere in Bedfordshire in 1152, it was of the
Gibertine Order. Rohse was the daughter of Aubrey and Beatrice.
Clare Priory was founded by Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Gloucester, a catholic.
The Church and the Monarcy
Especially during the early years of Christianity the role of the church and regligious in the activities
of kings and queens has to be taken into consideration when trying to understand why things happened the
way that they did. The obvious are those of Henry VIII, but earlier monarchs shaped the "political" nature
of both the church and the countries history.
I have added the reigning monarch to the list of vicars on my page on St. Mary's.
The Priests at St. Mary's, Belchamp Walter - 1370-1528
The clergy at St. Mary's was provided by Colne Priory presumably since its foundation around 1111.
The church records start at 1370. The last priest recorded as being associated with the Priory was
Vincent Wharton in 1528.
On the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1536 the provision of clergy for St. Mary's Belchamp Walter was transferred
to the Church of England.
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What the church guide says about Colne Priory and the de Vere connection
The following is highly improbable. The description is of the chantry in St. Mary's Belchamp Walter.
At the North - east end are the remains of what must have been a very beautiful
canopied Chantry Chapel, which evidently extended outside the North wall, and
would have incorporated the tomb of the Botetourt family - Sir John de Botetourt
having been buried in 1324. Prior to that date he occupied the Manor as
underlord of the de Veres - Earls of Oxford, at
Hedingham Castle, and Priory of Earls Colne, to
whom the Church at that time belonged. This memorial was apparently defaced
during the Civil War, at which time memorial brasses were also removed from
tombs under the Centre Aisle.
Since researching the statements from the church guide I have found a lot more information on the chantry,
Sir John de Botetourt and other aspects of what you now find in the church of St. Mary's Belchamp Walter.
I think that it is now safe to say that Sir John de Botetourt was NOT an "underlord" for the
de Veres and probably never lived in Belchamp Walter.
After the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century, the Crown granted the priory to John de Vere (1482–1540),
15th Earl of Oxford on 22 July 1536.[10]
A manor house was later built; the Priory church was demolished at an unknown date, prior to 1760. The 2001 history
provides these specifics: "the buildings were adapted as the manor house of Earls Colne and Colne Priory manors".[11]
In 1935, many of the surviving tombs at Colne, some with effigies,[12] were removed and relocated to St Stephen's Chapel
near Bures, Suffolk.[13]
The house now on the site, also called Colne Priory, was built here circa 1825, after demolition of the manor circa 1820.
It is not located exactly on the site of the original Priory.[14] The current house incorporates sections of the Priory
and of the post-Dissolution mansion. Some of the de Vere family remains are still buried under the lawns. Three tombs were discovered
by archaeologists in 2011 or 2012; they are believed to be from "the early years of the Priory".[15]
