Lanercost Priory

Ruins in Carlisle

St Mary, Lanercost, Cumbria — CC BY-SA 2.0 / Robert Cutts

Lanercost Priory was founded in 12th-century at the village of Lanercost, Cumbria, England, close to Naworth Castle, and Hadrian’s Wall. It was founded by Robert de Vaux to house Augustinian canons who remained for some 370 years until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1536, by Henry VIII.

The building went to Thomas Dacre of Naworth Castle nearby, who converted west cloister range into private dwellings now called the Dacre Hall. Part of this was the Prior’s Tower, a four story medieval stone fortified tower, with an adjoining two storey range to the west. The rest of the building fell into disrepair. About 1740 it was decided to restore the nave, and use it as a Parish Church.

An infirm Edward I stayed at Lanercost for several months at the start of the 14th century, not long before his death. He stayed in the Vicarage Tower, which is Known as King Edward’s Tower It is a 13th century two storey stone Pele Tower, with a line of dog-tooth ornament below the parapet.

Being close to the border made the priory a target for raids, including one by Robert the Bruce.

The Lanercost Priory appears in our Complete Guide to Visiting Carlisle!

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