Esholt Priory

Esholt Priory was a Cistercian priory in West Yorkshire, England. Esholt Hall now stands on the site of the priory.[1]

Esholt Hall on the grounds of the former priory (18th century painting)

The priory was built in the twelfth century when Simon Warde granted the estate to the nuns of Syningthwaite, an act that was confirmed by his son in 1172 and also in 1185. The nunnery was dedicated to St Mary and St Leonard and was suppressed in 1540 under the dissolution of the monasteries.[2]

Upon dissolution, the estate was given to Henry Thompson. Walter Calverley married into the Thompson family in 1709 and constructed Esholt Hall on the site of the Nunnery in Queen Anne style.[3][4]

In 1303, the Prioress, Juliana De La Wodehall, tendered her resignation to the bishop over a scandal in which one of the nuns got pregnant. Despite this, the bishop refused to accept her resignation.[5]

References
  1. Gray, Johnnie (1891). Airedale from Goole to Malham. Leeds: Walker & Laycock. p. 114. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  2. "Esholt Conservation Area Assessment" (PDF). Bradford Council. June 2002. p. 7. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  3. "Things to do in Esholt West Yorkshire". About Britain. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  4. Historic England. "Esholt Hall with Terrace and adjoining Conservatory (1133190)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 September 2019.
  5. "Houses of Cistercian nuns; Priory of Esholt". British History Online. London: Victoria County History. 1974. pp. 161–163. Retrieved 30 November 2015.


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