Tonbridge Priory
Remains of the Priory in 1735
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 Location within Kent
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| Monastery information | |
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| Established | 1124 |
| Disestablished | 1525 |
| Dedicated to | St Mary Magdalene |
| Diocese | Rochester |
| People | |
| Founder(s) | Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare |
| Site | |
| Location | Tonbridge, Kent |
| Coordinates | 51°11′33″N 0°16′19″E / 51.19250°N 0.27194°E |
| Grid reference | TQ 588 461 |
| Visible remains | None |
| Other information | Site obliterated by the building of Tonbridge railway station and associated infrastructure in 1842. |
Tonbridge Priory was a priory in Tonbridge, Kent, England that was established in 1124. It was destroyed by fire in 1337 and then rebuilt. The priory was disestablished in 1523. The building stood in 1735, but was a ruin by 1780. The remains of the priory were demolished in 1842 when the South Eastern Railway built the railway through Tonbridge, the original Tonbridge station standing on its site.
Tonbridge Priory was established in 1124 by Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare, who held Tonbridge Castle. He was buried in the priory following his death in 1136. In 1191, a Papal bull was issued by Pope Celestine III. The priory was granted two cartloads of wood daily and the right of pannage for 80 pigs. A buck was to be provided every year for the Feast of St Mary Magdalene. In 1291, income for the priory amounted to almost £52 from properties located in East Anglia, Kent, Surrey and Sussex. The priory enjoyed these rights until the forest of Tonbridge was forfeited to the Crown. King Richard II ordered that the priory should continue to enjoy the rights, although the right of pannage was reduced to 60 pigs.
The priory was dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene. It was an Augustinian priory which had a range of buildings including a chapter house, church, dormitory, library, refectory and vestry. In 1267, the priory was granted possession of the parish church in Tonbridge. A Christmas feast during the reign of King Edward I consisted 2 quarters of beef, 3½ casks of beer, 200 loaves of bread, six cockerels, two hams, 100 herrings, two pigs and some wine, at a cost of 16s 9½d.
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