St Botolph's Priory

St Botolph's Priory. . The priory of St Julian and St Botolph was founded in 1103 by a community of priests who had previously served an important church on this site. The dedication to St Botolph, an East Anglian abbot who died in 680, indicates a Saxon origin for the community., Influenced by widespread church reforms, the community chose to embrace the full religious life in the 1090s. Two of the priests were sent to study in northern France. On their return to Colchester, soon after 1100, they introduced the monastic Rule of St Augustine to their fellow priests., As a result, Colchester became the first Augustinian monastery in the country. In time, the number of Augustinian monasteries grew to a total of some 200 across England and Wales. The only building to survive here at Colchester is the nave of the priory church, built with much reused brick and stone from the Roman town. At the west end, the great 'screen façade' can be dated to c. 1160. The eastern half of the church does not survive, but its plan was revealed by an archaeological excavation in the early 1990s. The cloister lay to the south of the church, surrounded on three sides by buildings., The dormitory or sleeping quarters was on the east side at first-floor level, while the refectory or dining room was to the south, and the prior's rooms to the west., By the early 1530s, the priory was home to a much reduced community. It was closed on the orders of Henry VIII in 1536 and its assets were granted to Sir Thomas Audley, the king's Lord Chancellor who died in 1544. Although many of the buildings were destroyed, part of the church remained in use. However, it too became disused after losing its roof during the siege of Colchester in 1648 during the English Civil War.