Torre Abbey

Torre Abbey

Torre Abbey comprises two Grade I listed buildings in Torquay. It was founded in 1196 as a monastery for Premonstratensian canons when William Brewer, lord of the manor of Torre, gave them the land. By 1536 it had an annual income of £396, making it the wealthiest of all the Premonstratensian houses in England ["Valor Ecclesiasticus", ii, p. 362] .

The monks surrendered to King Henry VIII's commissioner in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. This resulted in a widescale demolition of the church and east range, and all items of value, including the lead from the roofs, were taken. The south and west ranges were mostly unscathed and, in 1598, were converted into a house for Thomas Ridgeway. After a succession of various owners, the house became the possession of the Cary family in 1662. It stayed in the family until 1930 when financial difficulties forced Commander Henry Cary to sell it to Torquay Borough Council. It has since been used as a municipal art gallery, the mayor's parlour and, during World War II, it was used by the Royal Air Force.

The Torre Abbey chapel is sometimes used for public ceremonies such as funerals and christenings, though it does not have a wedding license.

Buildings

The main abbey comprises two Grade I listed buildings. Though the church is little more than a ruin, the west and south sides of the cloisters are still standing. The gatehouse dates from around 1380, and the barrel vault above the chapel, formerly the guest hall, dates from the 15th century. The tithe barn, built along with the abbey in the early thirteenth century, is known as "The Spanish Barn" after it was used to hold 397 prisoners of war from the Spanish Armada in 1588.

Reconstruction and restoration

Around 1740 the buildings underwent extensive alterations, giving them a Georgian remodelling that is mostly intact today. The Cary family invested in further reconstructions throughout the 19th century, including the construction of a small brewery.

The abbey was closed on April 18 2006. Funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, the abbey is undergoing further restoration and is scheduled to reopen in summer 2008.

Contents and displays

Torre Abbey contains many collections of historic artifacts, including 18th and 19th century English glass, silver and pewter. One room is fitted out as an approximation of the study of Agatha Christie, the famed novelist that lived much of her life in Torquay.

Haunting

As with many historic buildings, there have been various reports and alleged sightings of three ghosts inside Torre Abbey – a headless monk, an 18th century lady and a Spanish lady searching for her long-lost love. "The Haunting of Torre Abbey" by Carole Bugge, a 2000 novel featuring Sherlock Holmes (ISBN 0-312-24557-2), sees the detective investigating ghosts in the buildings after being called in by Lord Charles Cary.

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Torre Abbey — Torre Abbey, Außenansicht Torre Abbey ist ein historisches Gebäude und ein Kunstzentrum in der südenglischen Küstenstadt Torquay. Es wurde im Jahr 1196 als Kloster errichtet und war von 1662 bis 1930 Residenz der einflussreichen Familie Cary.… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Torre — (plurals Torri and Torres) means tower in six Romance languages (Portuguese, Spanish, Galician, Catalan, Italian and Corsu) and may refer to:Backpack*Torre, a 85litre large ruck sac made by a New Zealand firm Macpac Biology * Muir Torre syndrome …   Wikipedia

  • Torre (desambiguación) — Torre puede hacer referencia a: Contenido 1 Libros 2 Apellidos 3 Arquitectura 3.1 Desambiguaciones en arquitectura …   Wikipedia Español

  • Torre de los Ingleses — or Torre Monumental is a tower located in Retiro, Buenos Aires, Argentina. It was constructed by British residents of the city to commemorate the centenary of the May Revolution of 1810.After the Falklands war the tower was renamed Torre… …   Wikipedia

  • Torre Monumental — Ansicht des Torre Monumental Torre Monumental, bis 1982 Torre de los Ingleses (spanisch für Turm der Engländer ), ist ein Uhrenturm im Stadtteil Retiro in der argentinischen Hauptstadt Buenos Aires. Er war ein Geschenk der britischstämmigen… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Abbaye de Torre — Vue de la façade Présentation Nom local Torre Abbey Culte Catholicisme Type …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Bobbio Abbey — The basilica of San Colombano. Bobbio Abbey (Italian: Abbazia di San Colombano) is a monastery founded by Irish Saint Columbanus in 614, around which later grew up the town of Bobbio, in the province of Piacenza, Emilia Romagna, Italy. It is… …   Wikipedia

  • Timoleague Abbey — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Abadía de Timoleague La Abadía de Timoleague (en irlandés Tigh Molaige) está situada en Timoleague en el condado de Cork, en Irlanda. El conjunto monacal fue fundado por los franciscanos en 1240. La abadía fue c …   Wikipedia Español

  • History of Torquay — Early history= The area comprising modern Torquay, has been inhabited since paleolithic times. Hand axes found in Kents Cavern date to 450,000 years ago, and a maxilla fragment known as Kents Cavern 4 may be oldest example of a modern human in… …   Wikipedia

  • Torquay — infobox UK place country = England official name= Torquay population= 62,963Office for National Statistics (2001), United Kingdom Census 2001 ] latitude= 50.4792 longitude= 3.5305 unitary england= Torbay lieutenancy england=Devon region= South… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”