Birkenhead in Merseyside, England, United Kingdom — Northwestern Europe (the British Isles)
Birkenhead Priory
Photographed by Ray Gurganus, April 10, 2024
1. Birkenhead Priory Marker
Birkenhead Priory was established as a Benedictine Monastery in the 1150s and is one of the oldest standing buildings in Merseyside. For nearly 400 years its monks farmed the land, welcomed travellers and operated a ferry across the Mersey to Liverpool. In 1536 it was closed down by Henry VIII and the monks dispersed.
St Mary's was the first parish church of Birkenhead. Today only its tower survives but from the top there are unrivalled views of the nearby Cammell Laird shipyards and of both sides of the River Mersey.
The Priory site is now a Scheduled Monument with a range of listed buildings, including the Chapter House, consecrated as a place of worship, the Scriptorium, which acts as home of the Friends of the training ship HMS Conway, and the Undercroft, which houses a museum.
Erected 2015.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Religion & Religious Structures • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1150.
Location. 53° 23.375′ N, 3° 0.732′ W. Marker is in Birkenhead, England, in Merseyside. It is on Wirral Circular Trail 0.2 kilometers east of Chester
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in North West England. Globally, it is on the Atlantic Ocean, in the North Atlantic Region, in Europe, in Atlantic Europe, on one of the British Isles, in the Western World, and in the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Roman Empire.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Chapter House (within shouting distance of this marker); Hamilton Square (approx. half a kilometer away); Hamilton Square / Half Man Half Biscuit (approx. half a kilometer away); 28 Argyle Street, Birkenhead (approx. half a kilometer away); The Cavern (approx. 2.5 kilometers away); Welcome to Eric's (approx. 2.5 kilometers away); Eric's (approx. 2.5 kilometers away); a different marker also named Eric’s (approx. 2.5 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Birkenhead.
Also see . . . History (The Birkenhead Priory).
Photographed by Ray Gurganus, April 10, 2024
2. Birkenhead Priory Church
Excerpt: The history of Birkenhead goes back beyond Victorian years. The oldest standing building on Merseyside, Birkenhead Priory encapsulates so much of the town’s history upon its site.(Submitted on May 10, 2024.)
Founded in circa 1150, the monks of this Benedictine monastery looked after travellers for nearly 400 years and supervised the first regulated “Ferry ‘cross the Mersey” up to the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1538.
Photographed by Rapid Photo Printing Company, London, 1908
3. Birkenhead Priory - the crypt
Credits. This page was last revised on July 30, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 9, 2024, by Ray Gurganus of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 194 times since then and 21 times this year. Last updated on July 29, 2024, by Ray Gurganus of Washington, District of Columbia. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 9, 2024, by Ray Gurganus of Washington, District of Columbia. 3. submitted on May 10, 2024. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
