BURNHAM ABBEY, which was originally founded for a community of Augustinian canonesses within the thirteenth century, is in the marketplace for £3.5 million after the ultimate ten nuns moved out.
The Abbey has most recently been the house of an Anglican community, the Society of the Precious Blood. Of the remaining members, seven are actually in nursing or care homes, and three have moved to live with the Community of the Sisters of the Church at their convent in Gerrards Cross.
The Abbey was inbuilt 1266, in Taplow, Buckinghamshire, by the brother of King Henry III, reportedly as an act of thanksgiving after he was free of captivity after the Battle of Lewes. The Abbey was built for a community of nuns who lived there until the Reformation. It became a non-public house, after which a farm, until it was sold in 1916 to the Society.
The Society of the Precious Blood (SPB) began as an lively community in 1905, founded by Mother Millicent Mary in Birmingham. It adopted the monastic rule of St Augustine. But, because the Community grew, it adopted a stricter lifetime of prayer, and, in 1916, 650 years after the primary dedication of Burnham Abbey, SPB became a contemplative community on the Abbey.
Alastair Hunt, an SPB trustee, said: “As the Sisters of the Society have grow to be older, it has grow to be clear that Burnham Abbey is not any longer an acceptable home for the community. The SPB Sisters and trustees are searching for to search out an acceptable alternative charitable use for Burnham Abbey. This may, nonetheless, prove to not be possible. With this in mind, and conscious of our responsibility as charity trustees to make best use of SPB’s assets in accordance with its charitable objectives, we’re also testing the market.
“A final decision regarding the long run of Burnham Abbey stays to be made.”
The charity’s objectives include providing support to assist “spiritual, emotional, and psychological health, and public education within the history and archaeology of the Abbey site”, he said.
The estate agents Knight Frank, who’re marketing the Abbey, describe it as among the best surviving medieval religious houses in Buckinghamshire.
The ancient buildings have been restored and maintained, and include an 18th-century timber barn and granary, Tudor partitions and fireplaces, the ruins of a medieval infirmary and frater, and a three-bedroom cottage. There are also gardens stretching to almost three acres.
