|
Much Wenlock Priory
The first monastery was founded at Much Wenlock around 690 by
Merewald, son of the great Penda, and a member of the royal house
of the Kingdom of Mercia. This was primarily a nunnery, but served
by priests who also lived a formal life under vow. This could
have been, effectively, two separate communities with, possibly,
two separate churches. The first abbess was Milburga, the daughter
of Merewald.
By the time the Normans landed, it is likely that both houses
had crumbled, but Wenlock was part of the extensive lands granted
to Roger de Montgomery, and it was he who resurrected Wenlock's
religious house. Roger de Montgomery was a benefactor of the
Abbey of Cluny which was one of the greatest of the continental
religious houses, and, around 1080, he decided to refound the
Much Wenlock community as a Cluniac priory, even bringing over
monks from the priory of La Charite-sur-Loire. However, the new
church was dedicated to St Milburga. This was probably a 'political'
decision as, by making a local connection, he would thus have
the backing of the inhabitants of the area.
This connection was reinforced when bones believed to be those
of Milburga herself were discovered by accident during the rebuilding
in 1101. On the night of June 23rd two boys, who had been playing
in the church of Holy Trinity, fell into a hole when the ground
beneath them gave way. The following morning, Prior Richard instructed
the monks to excavate the hole, and in it were found bones 'beautiful
and luminous'. Naturally, a suitable shrine was built for them.
Soon after this, Bishop Odo, nephew of Pope Urban II, arrived
in Much Wenlock, and it was he who recorded many of the subsequent
miracles in Much Wenlock. Although some of these 'miracles' may
seem bizarre today, who are we to question what happened almost
nine-hundred years ago.
 At
Peteley, the wife of Odo had a very mysterious disease; an immediate
cure was made when, having drunk some water in which the Saint's
bones had been washed, she vomited a worm which Odo examined;
it had two horns on its head, six legs and two horns on its tail'.
As a result people came from far and wide to be healed. Amongst
the miraculous cures were people cured of leprosy and blindness.
But the miracles did not stop. In the 15th and 16th-century,
there are recordings of people who were brought back to life
having been drowned in accidents, and at least four monks, seriously
injured or killed in accidents during repairs to the church were
miraculously cured.
It is believed that the priory ruins today stand on the site
of the canon's church and that the present parish church stands
on the ruins of the nuns' church. If this is true then her bones
would have been discovered when the church was being rebuilt.
By the middle of the 12th century a small town was developing
around the priory which was by this time flourishing to a point
where it had sent out monks to as far away as the Isle of Wight
and paisley in Scotland to man new priories. At this time, the
priory at Much Wenlock was still expanding physically as new
buildings were erected, and a Norman church had replaced the
Saxon one.
Before the middle of the 13th century, the priory was granted
the income from the church and rectory at Clun to help with the
construction and maintenance of the church which still stands
today which replaced the earlier Norman one. And by the middle
of the 13th century the priory was taxing the burgesses of Wenlock
town to the tune of 100 shillings per annum. This, despite sounding
like a paltry sum, was a burden on the townsfolk. In 1262 it
is recorded that inspectors from Cluny reported that although
the spiritual condition of the Much Wenlock Priory and its forty-four
monks was good, it was in debt. Wenlock wasn't alone in its predicament
as many such houses were having difficulty 'making ends meet',
and the reasons were often due to mismanagement.
By 1279 the debt had risen to over £1,000, largely due
to the mismanagement of the prior, John of Tycford. He had imprudently
ignored the teaching of the Bible and had borrowed heavily from
money-lenders, and had even sold wool from the priory's flocks
for the next seven years. - Who said the Futures Market was a
twentieth century phenomenon? John of Tycford was so unpopular
that one of the monks even plotted to kill him, but instead of
being sacked he was moved to an even more important Cluniac priory
at Lewes.
This was all at a time when relations between England and France
were deteriorating, and restrictions were put on foreign monks,
their foreign connections, and the transfer of money from England
overseas.
Although, in 1295, Edward I seized the lands of many priories
in the country, Wenlock Priory managed to hold on to its possessions,
but by 1337 it was having to pay £170 a year for the privilege,
and this only increased its financial difficulties and the sum
total of its debts.
By 1395, an English prior had been appointed and it had severed
its financial ties with Cluny and La Charite, but it was another
hundred years before it severed its religious connection.
Towards the end of the 15th century, Much Wenlock Priory had
returned to relative prosperity under the guiding hands of Prior
Richard. But the good times did not last, and in 1521 Rowland
Gosnell became prior which started a five year period of internal
unrest. Charges and counter-charges are recorded which show that
discipline had deteriorated amongst monks whilst Gosnell lived
himself in lavish style until he was deposed. Gosnell was succeeded
by John Bayley and he remained the prior until the Dissolution.
It was in 1540 when Wenlock Priory finally closed. Together with
other valuables, the lead was stripped from the roof by the King's
representatives and the buildings and estates were sold off.
The prior's house remained in use but the remaining buildings
were pillaged for building materials and allowed to fall into
ruin.
Much Wenlock Priory is in the capable hands of English Heritage,
and visitors are strongly recommended to use one of the audio
guides available at the entrance. (continued on next page)
  
|
