NHER 60531 (Monument record) - Site of Augustinian Friary, Gorleston on Sea

Site of large Augustinian Priory.

This site was previously recorded under NHER 10562. That number is now reserved for the excavated remains of the Priory. This record represents the approximate extent of the Priory grounds based on documentary evidence.

The Friary was founded in the 13th century, as a Friary impropriated to St. Bartholomew's, Smithfield. The extent of the original precinct is unknown, but it was extended in 1310, by the liberality of Roger Woderove, and was enlarged again in the reign of Edward III. Gorleston Friary was well known for its library, and several works associated with it survive today including the Gorleston psalter, the Douai psalter and the Macclesfield psalter. (S4)

The friary was dissolved in 1538. Parts of the church survived into the nineteenth century – the church tower fell in 1813.
See (S4).
K. Hamilton (NLA), 27 October 2008.

General Notes:
The marking of the hospital site, at Victoria Place off Church Road (ca. TG 52419 05131), is on the old series 6” OS according to the OS antiquity card – evidence for site not given.

An account written by the Suffolk Archaeologists in 1928 (Sm) states that portions of the Augustinian Friary, including the west gate, were still standing until the beginning of the last century. The article also states that in 1800 three cartloads of armorial tiles used for the paving of the church of the Priory were sold for road mending and stone from the ruins was used to build and repair many houses in Gorleston, but no references to the source of this information are provided.

See (St) for an account of the location of the priory buildings.

For folklore tales of tunnels from Burnt Lane to Burgh Castle, see (Sk).

1760, 1786, 1806.
Stone coffins found.

Before 1805. Casual Find.
Several 19th century publications (Sh, Sj, Si) describe a cross found buried amongst the ruins under the south wall of the Austin Friary in Southtown. Druery (Sj) provides the following description: "It is formed of lignum vitae, sabled by time or staining to the hue of ebony, but seems not to have ever had ornaments of brass like that described by Blomefield, and was probably laid over the coffin of some religious person buried here, belonging to the Convent."
Druery's article (Sj) was accompanied by an illustration, and a printer's block, donated by Mrs. Druery, was on display at the Tolhouse Museum for a time (Sg and Sk) but the Tolhouse collection was apparently destroyed during the war.
Information from (Sg).
H. Hamilton (HES), 16 October 2014.