Priories (10) : Kenilworth

An Augustinian priory was created in Kenilworth in 1124 by Geoffrey de Clinton who also built the nearby Kenilworth castle. The parish church of St Nicholas was built next to the priory in about 1291. The priory was promoted to an abbey by the Pope in 1447, by then it had been considerably built up and included an infirmary, gatehouse and a barn.

The abbey was dismantled following dissolution, only the barn and parts of the gatehouse remain today though the remains of the other buildings have been excavated.

Priories (9) : Lesnes

The former Lesnes Abbey is in the appropriately named Abbey Wood in Bexley, south east London. The abbey was founded in 1178 dedicated to St Mary and St Thomas the Martyr. The abbey was founded by Richard de Luci, Chief Justicar of England under King Henry II. It is thought founding the abbey may have been de Luci's penance for his role in the events which led up to the murder of Thomas Becket.

The abbey was involved in the draining of local marshland but the cost of this contributed to the abbey's unstable financial position. It was one of the first monasteries to be closed in the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1534. Nearly all of the abbey's buildings were demolished, the area becoming farmland. In the early 1900s the site was excavated by archaeologists, remains of the walls of the abbey's buildings can give an idea of the size and layout of the religious house.

Priories (8) : Pershore

Pershore abbey may have been founded in 689 though this cannot be reliably confirmed, a fire that destroyed the monastry's archives in 1002 not helping matters! Pershore was a Saxon religious house with the patronage of the Mercian kings though most details of the abbey's early existence are either lost or cannot be reliably confirmed. In the late 10th century the abbey was reestablished as Benedictine. However, this did not stop it going into a decline with the abbey losing some of it's lands as it fell foul of late Saxon politics. The abbey was destroyed by fire in 1002 (which is when the archives were lost).

The abbey recovered however and by 1020 it was active again. The main abbey building dates from about 1100. The abbey was dissolved in 1539 and the abbey partially demolished. The tower, choir and south transept survived and remains the parish church of the Holy Cross to this day. 

Priories (7) : Sandwell

A Benedictine priory at Sandwell, in what is now the West Midlands, was founded in the 12th century by William, son of Guy de Offendi. The priory was built next to the well which gives Sandwell it's name. A house of monks was set up dedicated to St Mary Magdalene. A hermitage is thought to have occupied the site before the priory was built.

The priory was not well run and was beset by mismanagement though obtained land and buildings as far afield as Shropshire and Buckinghamshire. The priory was dissolved on the order of Cardinal Wolsey in 1625, years before the Dissolution of the Monastries under King Henry VIII. Only the base remains of the priory buildings' walls now remain.

Priories (6) : Leominster

A monastery was established in Leominster perhaps as early as the seventh century. This monastery later became a nunnery but collapsed after the kidnap of the abbess Eadgifu by the Danes in 1046. In the 12th century Reading Abbey established a Benedictine priory in Leominster. The priory was quite possibly built on top of the earlier Saxon religious sites.

The priory was destroyed in 1539 when most of the monastic buildings including part of the priory church were lost. Most of the church survived and continues to serve as a parish church to this day.

Priories (5) : Wombridge

This Augustinian priory in Shropshire was founded in the early 12th century, the earliest grant of land to the priory recorded is from 1136CE. The priory was built in a wood clearing near to Watling Street. Later, the village of Wombridge was formed on priory lands. Now this is part of the modern settlement of Telford.

The priory was never a rich one though was thought to have been generally well run. It did not stop the priory being dissolved in 1536. The priory church is reported to have still been in existence in the 17th century where it was used as a coach house but the other buildings were demolished and plundered for stone. 

A new church, St Mary & St Leonard (the priory being dedicated to St Leonard) was built on the site of the priory ruins. The remains of the priory can still be seen in the churchyard.

Priories (4) : Maxstoke

Maxstoke Priory in Warwickshire was an Augustine priory. It's origin was in a college for monks formed by Sir William de Clinton in 1330, which was changed into a priory in 1336. The buildings however were not consecrated until 1342. Although the priory was never that rich (compared to other priories) it did establish a choir school with an organ in the 15th century, organs being rare at the time. The priory was dissolved in 1536.

Not much of the priory remains today and what remains is often in poor condition, the remains of the priory church collapsing as recent as 1986. The walls of the outer gatehouse remain along with parts of the priory wall. The inner gatehouse survives in modified form as a farmhouse. It is possible Maxstoke's parish church was once the priory's capella ante portas or outside church.

Priories (3) : Evesham Abbey

Evesham Abbey in Worcestershire was established in the early 700s (or maybe slightly earlier) by St Egwin. The abbey was Benedictine and became one of the richest in the country. This wealth paid for later additions to the abbey including the fine bell tower which happily survived dissolution. 

The abbey was plundered following dissolution in 1540. Apart from the bell tower the remains of the abbey include a section of wall and fragments of the chapter house and gateway. Two churches on the site, All Saints and St Lawrence, which were built in the 12th century by Benedictine monks, also survive although only the former remains a consecrated church.

Priories (2) : Polesworth Abbey

Polesworth Abbey was a Benedictine nunnery in Polesworth, Warwickshire. It was founded in the 9th century by St Modwena and King Edbert of Wessex. The first abbess was the King's daughter Edgytha who later became St Editha. Much of the abbey has now been lost though the abbey church remains as the parish church of St Editha. 

The gatehouse which dates from the 14th century and some restored ruins of the cloister are what remains of the abbey. The abbey was dismantled by Francis Goodere who had been granted the land by King Henry VIII in 1544. Stone from the abbey was used to construct the now demolished Polesworth Hall.

Priories (1) : Llanthony Secunda, Gloucester

Llantony Secunda Priory was an Augustinian canon house located in Gloucester. It was founded by the Earl of Hereford, Miles de Gloucester in 1136 as a refuge for the monks of Llanthony Priory in the Vale of Ewyas, after that priory came under attack from the local Welsh population. 

The priory became known for it's cheese making including gifts of cheese to the royal family. The priory was seized by the crown during the Dissolution of the Monastries and the lands granted to the MP Arthur Porter.

The priory is well preserved with some buildings intact.