The Gatehouse website logo
The comprehensive gazetteer and bibliography of the medieval castles, fortifications and palaces of England, Wales, the Islands.
 
 
Home
The listings
Other Info
Books
Links
Downloads
Contact
 
Print Page 
 
Next Record 
Previous Record 
Back to list 

Ewenny Priory

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Ewenni; Wenny

In the community of Ewenny.
In the historic county of Glamorgan.
Modern authority of Vale of Glamorgan.
Preserved county of Mid Glamorgan.

OS Map Grid Reference: SS91247779
Latitude 51.48871° Longitude -3.56918°

Ewenny Priory has been described as a certain Fortified Ecclesiastical site.

There are major building remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*.
Ewenny Priory was a cell of the Benedictine abbey of St Peter, Gloucester, founded within the lordship of Ogmore in the early 12th century. It is exceptional for its remarkably intact Romanesque priory church and its fortified precinct wall. These fortifications, built in 3 phases from the later 12th century, were works of prestige, but they incorporate impressive elements of military character. The priory occupied completely flat ground extending southwards from the Ewenny River, and lying upstream and 3km east of Ogmore Castle, caput of the de Londres manor of Ogmore, which similarly lies beside that river. William de Londres built a new church at Ewenny, in the NW part of the monastic precinct, replacing a pre-Norman Welsh church attested by nine Early Christian memorial stones found on the site (see PRN 400m). There is contradictory documentary evidence for the foundation date of the new church, although an architectural study suggests that it was constructed in a single building campaign of 1116 and that it constituted a priory from the outset. After the Dissolution, only the prior and two monks remained. It was then sold, with the nave continuing to serve as the parish church while the rest of the monastic church was either altered, and/or eventually allowed to fall into ruin. The surviving parts of the monastic complex were incorporated into 16th and 19th century rebuilding and adaption. The C13 precinct walls at Ewenny Priory are fortified and enclose an area of around 1.56 hectares. They incorporate the north transept of the romanesque priory church in one section of their circuit and four mural towers and two gatehouses were irregularly disposed around the rest of the perimeter. The two gatehouses, reconstructed around 1300, incorporate simple Norman vaulted gateways in their passages. (From Coflein and Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological TrustHER record both referencing RCAHMW, 2000)
Despite the impression frequently given of almost constant warfare in Wales throughout the C11-C15 of the two dozen monastic houses in Wales, some sizable and wealthy others small and isolated, only Ewenny and Caldy Priories are ever described as fortified. Caldy Island was clearly at threat from pirates. At Ewenny the fortification are "works of prestige".
Links to mapping and other online resources
Data >
Coflein   County HER        
Maps >
OS getamap   Streetmap   Old-Maps   Where's the path  
Data/Maps > 
Magic   Vision of Britain   EarthTools    
Air Photos >
Bing Maps   Google Maps   Getmapping   Flashearth  
Photos >
CastleFacts   Geograph   Flickr   Panoramio  

Sources of information, references and further reading

Most of the sites or buildings recorded in this web site are NOT open to the public and permission to visit a site must always be sought from the landowner or tenant.
It is an offence to disturb a Scheduled Monument without consent. It is a destruction of everyone's heritage to remove archaeological evidence from ANY site without proper recording and reporting. Don't use metal detectors on historic sites without authorisation.
The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Wales, the four welsh archaeological trusts and other individuals and organisations. All the sources given should be consulted to identify the original copyright holder and permission obtained from them before use of the information on this site for commercial purposes.
I do not receive any income from this site and I fund it myself. The information within this site is provided freely by me for educational purposes only.
The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.
Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere.
The possible site or monument is represented on maps as a point location. This is a guide only. It should be noted that OS grid references defines an area, not a point location. In practice this means the actual center of the site or monument may often, but not always, be to the North East of the point shown.
Locations derived from OS grid references and from latitude longitiude may differ by a small distance.
Further information on mapping and location can be seen at this link.
Please help me to make this as useful a resource as possible by contacting me if you see errors or if you can add information.
I do acknowledge the help I get.
*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of the described site.

This record last updated on Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Home | Books | Links | The Fortifications and Castles | Help | Downloads | Author Information | Contact

¤¤¤¤¤