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FRITHELSTOCK PRIORY

ALTERNATIVE NAME:

St Mary and St Gregory's Augustinian Priory.

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Ruins of the Priory Church, adjoining parish church (AMIE NMR number 32903, SS 41 NE 34). The priory was founded by Robert Beauchamp about 1220. Extensive ruins of the priory church still exist. It is largely early 13th century consisting of nave, choir and sanctuary, with a 14th century Lady Chapel to the east and the footings of a 14th century tower at the south west corner.The West front stands to eaves level with 3 very tall lancet window openings. The North wall shows the clerestory had lancets. The claustral buildings probably lay to the North of the church. These are the only remains of a religious house in North Devon.

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(SS 46391956) Remains of (NAT) St Mary & St Gregory's Priory (NR) (Augustinian) (NAT). (1)

The Augustinian priory of St Mary the Virgin and St Gregory was founded about 1220 and colonised from Hartland Abbey, for a prior and Arroasian canons. It was finally dissolved in 1536. (2)

The only visible remains of the priory are those of the early 13th century church consisting of nave, choir and sanctuary, with a 14th century Lady Chapel to the east and the footings of a 14th century tower at the south west corner. The west wall of the nave stands to gable height. Nothing remains of the other buildings, but it is probable that they lay to the north with the cloisters to the east of Cloister Hall which is probably on the site of the prior's house.
In the eastern range of modern barns is a substantial north to south wall which possibly marks the extent of the monastic buildings on this side. A long mound running south from the south east angle of the Lady Chapel may mark the eastern wall of the canon's cemetery. The site of the priory gate, which survived to 1796, stood at the south end of this wall just outside the existing cemetery extension. Hummocks in the field to the north suggest that there were buildings here. (3)

The visible remains of the Priory of St Mary and St Gregory (name confirmed) consist of parts of the walls of the nave, choir and Lady Chapel. The west front remains almost to gable height, about 8.0 m high, with three good lancet windows. The north wall of the nave is up to 5.0 m high, the south wall up to 1.3m high. The foundations of the tower are 0.5m high and those of the Lady Chapel from 0.3m to 1.0 m high.
There are a number of amorphous mounds immediately north-east and south of the ruins: some evidently result from stone robbing, others may conceal further remains.
"Cloister Hall" (name confirmed) is of two storeys, stone built and roughcast. Apart from hoodmoulds over the modern windows, the only external evidence of 16th century work is a fine Tudor doorway of granite.
Priory remains revised at 1:2500 on PFD. (4)

Ruins of Priory Church. The Augustinian priory was founded by Rober Beauchamp about 1220. Extensive ruins of priory church still exist. West front stands to eaves level with 3 very tall lancet window openings. North wall shows the clerestory had lancets. These are the only remains of a religious house in North Devon. (5)

Ruins of Priory church, Frithelstock. Grade I. (6,7)

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 6" 1963

( 2) by David Knowles and R Neville Hadcock 1971 Medieval religious houses in England and Wales

Page(s)157

( 3) Devon Archaeological Society Proceedings

C A Ralegh Radford & R P Chape 2, 1933 Page(s)3-27

( 4) Field Investigators Comments

F1 JGB 27-NOV-78

( 5) List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest

DOE(HHR)Bideford RD, Devon, Aug 1955, 7.

(6) List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest

DOE (HHR) Devon. Torridge Dist. FEB-1989 90

(7) Bridget Cherry and Nikolaus Pevsner 1989 Devon

The Buildings of England Page(s)452-3

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