Romsey Abbey
| Romsey Abbey | |
|---|---|
Romsey Abbey
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| Country | United Kingdom |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Churchmanship | Broad Church |
| Website | www.romseyabbey.org.uk |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Romsey |
| Diocese | Winchester |
| Province | Canterbury |
| Clergy | |
| Vicar(s) | The Reverend Tim Sledge |
| Curate(s) | The Reverend Jax Machin |
Romsey Abbey is a parish church of the Church of England in Romsey, a market town in Hampshire, England. Until the dissolution it was the church of a Benedictine nunnery. It is now the largest parish church in the county since Christchurch Priory is now in Dorset.
The church was originally built during the 10th century, as part of a Benedictine foundation. The surviving church is the town's outstanding feature, which is all the more remarkable because the abbey, as a nunnery, would have been less well financially endowed than other religious establishments of the time.
The religious community continued to grow and a village grew around it to keep it supplied with produce. Both suffered in 993 when Viking raiders sacked the village and burnt down the original church. However, the abbey was rebuilt in stone in around 1000 and the village quickly recovered. The abbey and its religious community flourished and were renowned as a seat of learning – especially for the children of the nobility.
In Norman times a substantial, new stone abbey, primarily designed as a convent, was built on the old Anglo-Saxon foundation (circa 1130 to 1140 AD) by Henry Blois, Bishop of Winchester and Abbot of Glastonbury. Bishop Henry was the younger brother of King Stephen and his structure dominates the town to this day. By 1240 in excess of 100 nuns were living in the community.
The rule of Elizabeth Broke was filled with scandal. A commission was held against her for many charges including allowing poor dress standards for nuns, allowing Nuns to go to the towns taverns, poor account keeping and an unhealthy relationship with the Chaplain.
The abbey continued to grow and prosper until the Black Death struck the town in 1348-9. While it is thought that as much as half of the population of the town – which was then about 1,000 – died as a result, the number of nuns fell by over 80% to 19. 72 nuns died including Abbess Johanna. After the plague there were never more than 26 nuns in the Abbey.
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Wikipedia