The history of monasteries, nunneries and friaries, and of the land they controlled and farmed, is an important element in landscape history as, although it seems distant from modern life, it can bring to light issues of building management, land management and, indeed, people management that can have parallels in 21st century life. Two important publications covering this theme, both published by the East Yorkshire Local History Society, are (a) Burton, J. The Religious Orders in the East Riding of Yorkshire in the Twelfth Century (1989) and (b) Cross, C. The End of Medieval Monasticism in the East Riding of Yorkshire (1993). The image above is scanned from the cover of Janet Burton’s book and is credited ‘St. John of Bridlington, from British Library, Royal MS (Manuscripts) and shows John in a saintly representation, seated on a ‘throne’ and right hand held in blessing – the ornate, stylised building shows evidence of a lierne vault and a tiled floor and is, presumably of the 14th century.
Claire Cross starts off by telling us that ‘The pattern of East Riding monasticism, laid down in the twelfth century, persisted without major alteration over the succeeding three hundred years’, that is until the Reformation of the 1530s. It is a curious fact that the East Riding had a lower density of abbeys (monastic sites) than the other Yorkshire Ridings but the highest density of nunneries. It would be tempting to find some historical/social reason for this curiosity but I suspect it was coincidental/quirk of history.
The nunneries of the East Riding were located at; Nunburnholme (at the foot of the scarp slpe of the Yorkshire Wolds, three miles east of Pocklington), Nunkeeling (Holderness, four miles north-west of Hornsea Mere, site uncertain),Thicket (on the west bank of the River Derwent near the village of Wheldrake, site certain but no public right of way access), Wilberfoss (site uncertain, near Kexby Bridge on the A1079), Yedingham
(to be continued)