| Pershore Abbey | |
|---|---|
| Abbey Church of Holy Cross with Saint Edburgha | |
| Church of the Holy Cross | |
 Pershore Abbey | |
 Pershore Abbey | |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Previous denomination | Catholic Church |
| Churchmanship | Broad Church |
| Website | [1] |
| History | |
| Dedication | Holy Cross |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Grade Ilisted building |
| Designated | 11 February 1965 |
| Style | Romanesque,Gothic |
| Administration | |
| Province | Canterbury |
| Diocese | Worcester |
| Parish | Pershore |
| Clergy | |
| Vicar | Claire Lording |
Pershore Abbey, atPershore inWorcestershire, was aBenedictineabbey with Anglo-Saxon origins and is now anAnglicanparish church, theChurch of the Holy Cross.
The foundation of the minster at Pershore is alluded to in a spurious charter of KingÆthelred of Mercia (r. 675–704). It purports to be the charter by which Æthelred granted 300hides (about 36,000 acres) at Gloucester to KingOsric of the Hwicce, and another 300 at Pershore to Osric's brother Oswald.[1][2] It is preserved only as a copy in a 14th-century register of Gloucester, where it is followed by two charters listing the endowments made to the abbey until the reign of King Burgred (852-874).[3][4] The 300 hides mentioned here are unlikely to be a contemporary detail, as they were intended to represent the triplehundred which later made up the area of Worcestershire.[1] HistorianH. P. R. Finberg suggests that the foundation charter may have been drafted in the 9th century, based on some authentic material.[5] Oswald's foundation of a monastery at Pershore is not stated explicitly in the charter, but the Worcester chronicleCronica de Anglia, writtenc. 1150, reports it under the annal for 683, andJohn Leland, consulting the now lostAnnals of Pershore, places the event around 689.[1][6]Patrick Sims-Williams suggests that the foundation by Oswald may also represent an oral tradition at Pershore, as its archives were probably destroyed in fires of 1002 and again in 1223.[1]
In the 9th century, Pershore comes to light again as a minster under the patronage ofMercian kings. In other charters contained in the Gloucester register,Coenwulf (r. 796–821) and Burgred are recorded as having been patrons of Pershore.[4] A charter ofKing Edgar refers back to a grant of privileges by Coenwulf at the request of hisealdorman (dux) Beornnoth.[1][7]
In the reign of King Edgar (959-975), Pershore reappears as one of the abbeys to be re-established (or restored) under the programme ofBenedictine reform. Writingc. 1000, the Ramsey monkByrhtferth relates that under the auspices ofOswald, bishop of Worcester, seven monasteries were founded in his diocese, notably including Pershore.[8] The first abbot was one Foldbriht,[9] whose name is sufficiently rare to suggest that he may be the same Foldbriht whom BishopÆthelwold previously installed atAbingdon and used to be a monk ofGlastonbury before that time.[10]
The refoundation is what lies behind an exceptionally elaborate charter for Pershore, dated 972, in which King Edgar is presented as granting new lands and privileges as well as confirming old ones, such as the one granted by Coenwulf.[7] The authenticity of this document, however, has been questioned.Simon Keynes in 1980 showed that it belongs to the so-calledOrthodoxorum group of charters, so named after the initial word of theirproem, which he concluded were forgeries based on a charter ofÆthelred II's reign.[11] Since then, Susan Kelly and John Hudson have vindicated the status of some of these charters, including the one for Pershore, which is written in square minuscule characteristic of some of Edgar's charters.[12] More recently, Peter Stokes has brought to light a variant copy of the charter and suggests that two different versions may have been produced around the same time, somewhere between 972 and 1066. A possible scenario is that they were produced to make up for the loss of the original charter(s), perhaps shortly after the fire which is reported to have destroyed the abbey inc. 1002 (see below).[13]
The 12th-century historianWilliam of Malmesbury, who seems unaware of any pre-existing minster, claims that one Æthelweard (Egelwardus), whom he describes as "ealdorman of Dorset", had founded the abbey of Pershore in the time of King Edgar.[14] Similarly,Osbert'sLife ofEadburh of Winchester alleges that oneAlwardus, who is styledcomes andconsul, was responsible for the refoundation. Both authors also attribute to him a role in the translation of some of the saint's relics to Pershore. Osbert writes that an abbess ofNunnaminster had sold some relics to Æthelweard (Alwardus), who in turn handed them over for the refoundation of Pershore.[15] Some scholars have identified him withÆthelweard, the well-known chronicler and ealdorman of the western shires.[16][note 1]
Whatever high-level patronage the foundation may have received, it was not enough to sustain its fortunes for very long. Precisely what happened to Pershore in the later 10th century is poorly documented, but some sources seem to hint that it went into decline during the succession crisis which emerged in the wake of King Edgar's death.[18] William of Malmesbury says that "it, too, like the others, decayed to a pitiful extent, and was reduced by more than a half".[14] According to Leland, theAnnals of Pershore hold an earl calledDelfer responsible for depriving the abbey of several of its lands. ThisDelfer has been interpreted as a misreading forÆlfhere (d. 983), ealdorman of Mercia[18] (whom Leland mentions elsewhere).[19] While himself a patron of Ely and Abingdon, Ælfhere was also charged with despoiling reformed monasteries duringEdward the Martyr's brief reign (975-978). The targets included houses refounded by Bishop Oswald or Bishop Æthelwold and considerably enriched under the patronage of Æthelstan Half-King's sons, notablyÆthelwine, ealdorman of East Anglia.Evesham Abbey, for instance, as later reported byits own chronicle, also claimed to have lost several of its lands in this way, andWinchcombe was disbanded altogether. Æthelwine, in his turn, was remembered at Ely as a despoiler of its lands. Tensions between Ælfhere and Bishop Oswald, whose authorities overlapped, and between Ælfhere and Æthelwine, with whom Oswald maintained a close relationship, are therefore likely to have been the principal cause of the upheaval.[18] Whether a liberty similar to that ofOswaldslow was an extra cause for concern, compromising Ælfhere's authority as ealdorman, cannot be ascertained from the sources.[18]
Pershore suffered worse misfortune when, according to Leland, it was destroyed by fire and subsequently deserted by the monks,[19][20] probably in the year 1002.[21] The monastic archives were largely lost in the event, as no original record from before that date survives today.[21] Pershore, however, found a generous patron in the wealthy noblemanOdda of Deerhurst (d. 1056), who restored many of its lands and granted new ones. It has been suggested[who?] that he was a kinsman of the ealdorman Æthelweard. The earliest extant record from the archive of Pershore, a charter of 1014 by which King Æthelred granted Mathon (Herefordshire) to ealdorman Leofwine, may testify to Odda's restorations of lands to the house.[21][22] The monastery was active again by the 1020s, as its abbot Brihtheah was promoted bishop of Worcester in 1033.[21] Odda's brother Ælfric was buried at Pershore in 1053, joined three years later by Odda himself.[21]
In Odda's lifetime the total landed assets of Pershore grew to 300 hides, but after the loss of its benefactor in 1056 about two-thirds were seized and given toEdward the Confessor's new foundation at Westminster.[21] The original single sheet which preserves the fullest version of King Edgar's refoundation charter (though it need not be authentic) is marked by a number of textual alterations and erasures. Some of these changes may suggest a response to the abbey's proprietary struggles.[13]
From the early 12th century there is evidence that Pershore Abbey claimed possession of some of the relics of SaintEadburh of Winchester, thesainted daughter of KingEdward the Elder. Her body was initially buried atNunnaminster (Winchester), but it was translated in the 960s to a more central spot inWinchester, and again to a shrine in the 970s. Among several possibilities, Susan Ridyard has suggested that the Eadburh whose relics were preserved at Pershore may have been a Mercian saint of that name whose identity had become obscure.[15]
The main building was begun in about 1100. In the fourteenth century it benefited greatly from the generosity ofAdam de Harvington,Chancellor of the Exchequer 1327–30, who was a cousin, and eventually the heir, of the Abbot, William of Harvington. The abbey wasdissolved in 1539. A monk of Pershore, named Richard Beerly, was one of those who gave evidence toThomas Cromwell in 1536 about the misbehaviour of some of his brothers, writing that "Monckes drynk an bowll after collacyon tell ten or xii of the clock, and cum to mattens as dronck as myss, and sume at cardes, sume at dyss."[23] (Monks drink a bowl aftercollation[28] until ten or twelve o'clock, and come toMatins as drunk as mice, some [playing] at cards, some at dice.)[29]
Pershore Abbey church was partly demolished after the reformation when it was surrendered to the King's Commissioners in 1540; only the tower, choir, and south transept remain.[30] The abbey church remained in use as aparish church. When the northtransept collapsed in 1686, a wall was built in its place. Further alterations were carried out, including arestoration byGeorge Gilbert Scott in 1862–64. Scott removed thebelfry floor and opened up thelantern tower, exposing the internaltracery which he thought the best in England after that atLincoln Cathedral. The tower pinnacles were added in 1871.[31] In 1913, two westernflying buttresses were added to replace the support from the missing portion of the building.
The church as it now stands represents only a small portion of the original building. It is a Grade Ilisted building.[32] Repairs in 1994 stabilised the south transept, strengthened its roof and repointed the tower and pinnacles. An underfloor heating system was also installed.
Pershore Abbey has a ring of eight bells, of which six were cast by the youngerAbraham Rudhall in 1729. The treble was cast in 1814 by Thomas Mears of theWhitechapel Bell Foundry. The cracked 4th (also 1729 by Rudhall) was recast by J. Barwell & Sons of Birmingham[33][34] with "moderate success"[35] in 1897, the same year they were rehung. The largest bell (the tenor) is estimated to weigh 25½ cwt (2856 lbs.) and sounds the note D.[36]
The ringing room, devised as part of Gilbert Scott's 1862-64 restorations, is a metal 'cage' suspended high above the chancel crossing; it is accessed by means of two stone spiral staircases, a walkway through the roof, a squeeze through a narrow passage and a see-through iron staircase.
The bells have the following inscriptions (in capital letters).[36][37]
In about 1840 the abbey was given a newbaptismal font. The originalNorman font was removed to the churchyard where it served as acattle trough, and later as a garden ornament. In 1912 awar memorial was erected on the site of theVictorian font and the old font was re-instated, on a pedestal designed byHarold Brakspear. The font is decorated with an interlacingarcade, in the panels of which are the figures ofChrist and hisApostles.[39]
| Name | In office | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Foldbriht | c. 970 – 988 | [40] |
| Brihtheah (Brihteah) | ? – 1033 | Nephew ofWulfstan I, Archbishop of York; went on to become bishop of Worcester (1033–8)[40] |
| Ælfric | ? | fl. 1046 x 1050.[40] |
| Edmund | 1058–1085 | d. 1085.[40] |
| Thurstan | 1085–1087 | Master of Gloucester.[40] |
| Hugh | ? | Died before 1113.[40] |
| Guy | ? – 1102 ? – 1136/7 | Deposed in 1102, but later restored to office.[40] |
| William | 1138 – ? | Master of Eye.[40] |
| Thomas | ? | Appears in 1143 x 1145 and following suspension, again in 1145 x 1150.[40] |
| Reginald | ? – 1174 | First known appearance in 1155.[40] |
| Simon | 1175–1198 | [40] |
| Master Anselm | 1198–1203 | Master of Reading, d. 1203.[40] |
| Gervase | 1204–1234 | d. 1234.[40][41] |
| Roger de Rudeby (Rudby) | 1234–1251 | Chamberlain of Pershore.[41] |
| Elerius | 1251–1264 | Prior of Cogges.[41] |
| Henry of Bidford | 1264 – ? | Master of Pershore.[41] |
| Henry de Caldewelle | 1274–1290 | Master of Pershore.[41] |
| William de Leghe | 1290–1307 | Cellarer of Pershore.[41] |
| William of Harvington | 1307–1340 | Master of Pershore, etc.[41] |
| Thomas of Pirton (Pyriton) | 1340–1349 | Cellarer of Pershore.[41] |
| Peter of Pendock | 1349–1363 | Master of Pershore.[41] |
| Peter (de) Bradewey(e) | 1363–1379 | Master of Pershore.[41] |
| Thomas de Upton | 1379 | Elected 1379.[20] |
| William de Newenton | 1413 | [20] |
| Edmund Hert | 1456–1479 | [20] |
| Robert Stanwey | 1479 | [20] |
| John Pibleton | 1497 | [20] |
| William Compton | 1504–1526 | [20] |
| John Stonywell | 1526–1539 x 40 | Surrendered the abbey[20] |
The earliest record of an organ in Pershore abbey is from the parish magazine for June 1825 which stated that the parishioners had started a voluntary subscription fund for the erection of an organ.[42] This organ was built by Mr. Russell of London and opened by the organistCharles Clarke ofWorcester Cathedral on 1 November 1826.[43] This organ is thought to have functioned for 47 years when it was sold to Sedgley Parish Church. In 1864 it is recorded that during a restoration of the church, it was reconstructed by Nicholson ofMalvern and moved to the north-east chapel.[44]
A new three manual organ was built by Nicholson ofMalvern and opened on 18 April 1873.[45] The Nicholson was restored twice byJ. W. Walker & Sons Ltd, in 1940[46] and 1971.[47] This was replaced by a Bradford electronic organ.
A new pipe organ, costing around £850,000, was commissioned from the Fratelli Ruffatti workshop in Italy and installed in 2023.[48]
Past organists and masters of music include Charles Tovey (1832-1868[49]), William Hancox (1868[50]-1869), Charles Henry Ogle (1869-1896), Edred Martin Chaundy (1898–1899, formerly ofEnniskillen Parish Church, afterwardsHoly Trinity Church, Stroud andArmagh Cathedral), Frank Alfred Charles Mason (1900–1949[51]), Peter Bruce Waddington (1949-1951), Rodney Clifford Baldwyn (1951[52]–1981), Ian Gerrard (1993–2003), Sheila Joynes (2003–2004), Mike Pegg (2004–2005), David Barclay (2005–2007) and Alex Crawford (2007–2008). In 2009, Mike Pegg resumed his former duties.
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The buried foundations of the other monastic buildings, which lie to the southwest of the church, were identified in an archaeological excavation in 1929.[53]
At the Dissolution, these buildings and the abbey grounds were acquired by John Richardson. The buildings were demolished and the grounds passed through various owners. Abbey House was later built on the site,[54] sometime in the 1830s. In 1910 its owner, Henry Wise, donated the house to theAnglican Benedictine monks ofCaldey Abbey, Pembrokeshire. When these monks converted to Roman Catholicism in 1913, they returned Abbey House to Wise who then provided it for the use of the small remnant of monks from Caldey who had remained Anglican.[55] In 1922 the monks bought the house.[56] They left Pershore forNashdom Abbey, Buckinghamshire, in 1926,[57] but only sold Abbey House in 1947 when it was demolished and the grounds became housing and parkland.[58]
St. Benedict in his rule requires his religious to assemble after supper and before Compline and listen to the 'Collations'—i.e. theConferences (ofCassian), theLives of the Fathers, or other edifying books which were then read aloud by one of their number.
52°06′38″N02°04′40″W / 52.11056°N 2.07778°W /52.11056; -2.07778
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