January 969 A.D. Ramsey Abbey, Cambridgeshire—Founded 969 by
Benedictine Monk; Site Offered to St.
Osward, Bishop of Worcester; Dissolved
Nov 1539; Church Modified & Incorporated
into Mansion Called “Ramsey House,” c. 1600;
Comprehensive School Since 1980s; Abbey Church Called “Saint Mary and
Saint Benedict, Ramsey;” 86 Miles Nearwise Due North of London & a Few
Miles N. of Cambridge
Ramsey Abbey
From Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia
Gatehouse of the abbey, 15th century, with ornate
oriel window
Ramsey
Abbey is a former Benedictine abbey located in Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, England, southeast of Peterborough and north of Huntingdon, UK.
Contents
History
Ramsey Abbey was founded in
969 by Saint Oswald, Bishop of
Worcester through the gift of a local magnate, Æthelwine. The foundation was part of
the mid-10th century monastic revival (when Ely and Peterborough were also refounded). It paid 4000 eels yearly in Lent to Peterborough
Abbey for access to its quarries of Barnack limestone.
A Prior and twelve monks
formed the original foundation. The Abbey itself was then situated on a
peninsula of gravel, known as Bodsey Island, with the impassable fen to three
sides. The chapel was replaced by a large, stone-built church over the next
five years and thus remained until the Norman Abbot created a much grander
project in the 12th century. It was thought to have been founded by Earl Ailwyn
(Æthelwine), an effigy of whom is thought to be within the Abbey dating from
1230.
Considerable damage was
inflicted upon the Abbey by Geoffrey de Mandeville in 1143; he expelled the monks and used the
buildings as a fortress.
In the order of precedence for
abbots in Parliament, Ramsey was third after Glastonbury and St Alban's.[1]
The abbey prospered until the Dissolution
of the Monasteries in 1539 and was an international centre of Hebrew scholarship in the late
Middle Ages. At the time of the Dissolution there were still 34 monks. Stone
from the abbey was used to build Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, King's
College, Cambridge and Trinity
College, Cambridge. The Abbey lands were sold to Sir Richard Williams (alias Cromwell).[1] Sir Henry Cromwell started to build the present country
house (now a school) on the site.
In 1737 the abbey was bought
by Coulson Fellowes, MP for Huntingdonshire from 1741 to 1761. It passed down through several
generations of Fellowes, who became the Barons de
Ramsey, during which time the house
was substantially enlarged. In 1931 the family moved their seat to Abbots Ripton
Hall at the coming of age of the 4th Baron and in 1937 leased the building for 99 years to
Ramsey Abbey School. In 1952 they donated the gatehouse to the National Trust,
who allow it to used as part of the school.[2]
The Abbey today
Ramsey Abbey today
Ramsey Abbey Censer and Incense Boat, early to mid
14th Century AD in the V&A Museum, London
Ramsey Abbey House, the
Gatehouse, Almshouses and the parish church can still be seen.[3]
Ramsey Abbey House, the former
17th century home of Sir Henry Cromwell and latterly the seat of the Fellowes
family, is currently used by Abbey College to house 6th form facilities and to accommodate lessons.
The Abbey
Gatehouse is a National Trust property.[4] Part of the gatehouse was removed by the son and
heir of Sir Richard (Sir Henry
Williams (alias Cromwell)) to form the main gateway to Hinchingbrooke
House in Huntingdon, his newly built winter residence.[5] Today, what remains of the gatehouse also forms a
part of the college.[6]
The town's parish church of St
Thomas Becket was built ca. 1180-90 as a hospital, infirmary or guesthouse of
the abbey. It was originally an aisled hall with a chapel at the east end with
a vestry on the north side and the warden's lodgings on the south, but both
these have been demolished. The building became the parish church ca. 1222.
When Whittlesey
Mere was being drained, a thurible and other silver items were found in the bed of the
mere and from the ram's head on one of these pieces were believed to have come
from the Abbey.[7] The thurible (or censer),[8] and an incense boat[9] are now in the Victoria
& Albert Museum. Also found in the bed were blocks of quarried stone,[10] which are supposed to have fallen from a barge on
the way to the Abbey.
Burials
- Saint Felix of Burgundy - his remains were publicly displayed as a reminder to the people. Cnut the Great
References
1.
^ Jump up
to:a b 
"Ramsey Abbey". Catholic
Encyclopedia 12. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1911.
"Ramsey Abbey". Catholic
Encyclopedia 12. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1911.
6.
Jump up^ The new establishment "The Abbey College,
Ramsey" was formed from the amalgamation of Ramsey Abbey School with the
adjacent Ailwyn School and has been operational from September 2006, leaving
the previous two names defunct
9.
Jump up^ http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O110087/the-ramsey-abbey-incense-boat-incense-boat-unknown/
External links
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