Ulverscroft Priory

Ulverscroft Priory was founded by Robert de Bossu, Earl of Leicester in 1134 as a priory for eremites of the Order of St Augustine. It was closely connected with the Lords Ferrars of Groby. The last Prior was Geoffrey Whalley. On the suppression of the Priory in 1539, Whalley was granted a pension of £20. The Priory estate at this time comprised convert|957|acre|km2 with a further convert|700|acre|km2 in Charnwood Forest, 300 cattle, 1,000 sheep and 60 swine. Seven men were employed felling and carting timber for the Priory brewery.

The present farmhouse incorporates the Prior's lodging and refectory; parts of the church and church tower remain. Thornton Church has the Priory door. [Edward Shardlow "A Guide to Leicester and District". British Association for the Advancement of Science, Leicester, 1907 ] The site was purchased in 1927 by Sir William Lindsay Everard, preserving the decaying ruins from total destruction. [ [http://www.leicestershirevillages.com/ulverscroft/ulverscroftpriory.html Leicestershire Villages] ]

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