Farewell Priory
St Bartholomew's Church, Farewell, today. It incorporates some of the medieval stonework at the eastern end.
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 Location within Staffordshire
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| Monastery information | |
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| Full name | Convent of St. Mary, Farewell |
| Order | Benedictine |
| Established | Mid-12th century |
| Disestablished | 1527 |
| Dedicated to | Mary, mother of Jesus |
| Diocese | Diocese of Coventry and Lichfield |
| Controlled churches | Farewell |
| People | |
| Founder(s) | Roger de Clinton |
| Important associated figures |
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| Site | |
| Location | Farewell near Lichfield |
| Coordinates | 52°42′08″N 1°52′42″W / 52.7023°N 1.8783°WCoordinates: 52°42′08″N 1°52′42″W / 52.7023°N 1.8783°W |
| Public access | Site open to public. Church in use. |
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Listed Building – Grade II*
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| Official name | Church of St Bartholomew |
| Designated | 27 February 1964 |
| Reference no. | 1374273 |
Farewell Priory was a Benedictine nunnery near Lichfield in Staffordshire, England. Although it received considerable episcopal support, it was always small and poor. It was dissolved in 1527 as a by-product of Cardinal Wolsey's scheme to establish a college within Oxford University.
A religious community was founded at Farewell by Roger de Clinton,Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry (1129 – 48). It is clear that the house was originally described as an abbey and it was originally made up of male hermits. A charter of the bishop specifies that it is a grant to canonicis fratribus, suggesting the community were canons regular, probably Augustinian. The locality in which they held land and could [[assart] in the woods was named as Chirstalleia, which seems to be Chestall, now a hamlet to the east of Castle Ring and north of Cannock Wood. The charter also conceded rights of pannage and pasturage. A further grant affirms that it is made in response to the requests of domini Rogeri et Gaufridi et Roberti, heremitarum et fratrum de Faurwelle: Masters Roger, Walter and Robert, hermits and brothers of Farewell. However, the purpose of the grant is to transfer the church and their lands, together with small estates at Pipe and Hammerwich, to a community of women. Hence it seems that both the initial grant to a male hermitage and its replacement as beneficiary by a nunnery were the work of the same bishop. It is unclear whether the male community simply disappeared or continued in one or more different forms. As late as 1167 an estate at Pipe Magna was recorded by the sheriff as terra trium canonici de Pipa, "the land of the three canons of Pipe." Moreover, Radmore Abbey, a Cistercian house, was established a short distance away during the same period as Farewell, incorporating hermits who already lived nearby and also with the involvement of Roger de Clinton.
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