St Mary's Priory, Old Malton

Old Malton, United Kingdom

The only remaining Gilbertine church still in regular use. The Gilbertines were the only English Monastic order, founded by Gilbert of Sempringham about 1131. Gilbert, born a cripple, died aged 106 in 1190, and was declared a saint within twelve of years of his death by Pope Alexander III. The Book of Gilbert, detailing the evidence by which he was made a saint still survives. Unlike almost every other monastic order, the Gilbertines had both men and women, and most of their houses were double houses, with both Priors and Nuns.

Old Malton Priory, founded 1149, was one of the few houses which was for Priors only. Following the death of Gilbert, it became the headquarters of the order for about 50 years. Despite the poverty of the order, it was one of the very last monasteries to be closed during the dissolution of the monateries, in 1539. Today, the church is less than a quarter of its original size, but is still a spectacular building both outside and in, with some mediaeval misericords, and also remains from an earlier saxon church on the site.

References:

Comments

Your name


Address

Town Street 18, Old Malton, United Kingdom
See all sites in Old Malton

Details

Founded: 12th Century
Category: Religious sites in United Kingdom

More Information

www.stmarysmalton.org.uk

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby


Merchant Adventurers' Hall (28,4 km)
Julian's Bower (51,4 km)
City of Troy Maze, Dalby (17,3 km)

User Reviews

DeVille Hall (12 months ago)
Beautiful peaceful old place with lovely walks across fields and by the river to The Old Lodge and Museum gardens .One of the highlights of a visit to Malton.
Lynne (2 years ago)
Lovely church and abbey grounds
ann h (2 years ago)
Lovely church, highly recommend you visit,
Angus Deas (2 years ago)
Wonderful old church. Very interesting history
Lydia Reveley (2 years ago)
Mesmerising. Staff are absolutely lovely and super helpful. It's a wondeful chance to say a prayer for someone dear, share your thoughts and hopes or take a minute to think of loved ones. Absolutely beautiful! It was nice to be able to make a contribution on leaving as the volunteers work extremely hard to ensure the church is open for people to visit!
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

History of Guernsey & Jersey
Photo from Flickr, copyright Honza Soukup

Historic Site of the week

Angelokastro

Angelokastro is a Byzantine castle on the island of Corfu. It is located at the top of the highest peak of the island"s shoreline in the northwest coast near Palaiokastritsa and built on particularly precipitous and rocky terrain. It stands 305 m on a steep cliff above the sea and surveys the City of Corfu and the mountains of mainland Greece to the southeast and a wide area of Corfu toward the northeast and northwest.

Angelokastro is one of the most important fortified complexes of Corfu. It was an acropolis which surveyed the region all the way to the southern Adriatic and presented a formidable strategic vantage point to the occupant of the castle.

Angelokastro formed a defensive triangle with the castles of Gardiki and Kassiopi, which covered Corfu"s defences to the south, northwest and northeast.

The castle never fell, despite frequent sieges and attempts at conquering it through the centuries, and played a decisive role in defending the island against pirate incursions and during three sieges of Corfu by the Ottomans, significantly contributing to their defeat.

During invasions it helped shelter the local peasant population. The villagers also fought against the invaders playing an active role in the defence of the castle.

The exact period of the building of the castle is not known, but it has often been attributed to the reigns of Michael I Komnenos and his son Michael II Komnenos. The first documentary evidence for the fortress dates to 1272, when Giordano di San Felice took possession of it for Charles of Anjou, who had seized Corfu from Manfred, King of Sicily in 1267.

From 1387 to the end of the 16th century, Angelokastro was the official capital of Corfu and the seat of the Provveditore Generale del Levante, governor of the Ionian islands and commander of the Venetian fleet, which was stationed in Corfu.

The governor of the castle (the castellan) was normally appointed by the City council of Corfu and was chosen amongst the noblemen of the island.

Angelokastro is considered one of the most imposing architectural remains in the Ionian Islands.

Map Top Sights Tags Historical Periods City Guides About Us Sign Up Upload new site
© 2021 SpottingHistory.com. All rights reserved.