Barking Abbey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Barking Abbey

Barking Abbey: curfew tower with St Margaret's church in background
Location in Greater London
Monastery information
Established	c. 666 AD
Disestablished	1539
Dedicated to	Saint Mary and Saint Ethelburga
People
Founder(s)	Saint Erkenwald. Founded for his sister Saint Ethelburga
Site
Location	Barking, London, London, England
Coordinates	51°32′08″N 0°04′31″E / 51.535556°N 0.075278°E / 51.535556; 0.075278

Barking Abbey was once a very important royal monastery located in Barking, London. It was known as one of the most significant nunneries (a place where nuns live) in England.

The abbey was first built around the 7th century. From the late 900s, the nuns followed the Rule of St. Benedict, a set of rules for monastic life. Barking Abbey had a lot of land and a good income. However, in 1377, the River Thames flooded about 720 acres of its land, which was a big problem. Even so, when monasteries were closed down later, Barking Abbey was still the third wealthiest nunnery in England.

The abbey existed for almost 900 years. It closed in 1539 as part of King Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries. Many important women were abbesses (the head nun) of Barking Abbey. These included several saints, former queens, and daughters of kings. The abbess of Barking was considered the most important abbess in all of England.

Today, the ruined parts of Barking Abbey are in a public park called Abbey Green. You can still see its partially rebuilt Curfew Tower. This tower is so important that it's shown on the coat of arms of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham.

Next to the abbey ruins is St Margaret's Church, Barking. This church was built in the 13th century within the abbey grounds. The Abbey Ruins are now used for outdoor classical concerts in May. Members of the Eastern Orthodox Church also hold an annual pilgrimage there.

History of Barking Abbey

Building the Abbey

Barking Abbey was one of two monasteries built in the 7th century. Saint Erkenwald founded both. He built Chertsey Abbey for himself and Barking Abbey for his sister, Saint Ethelburga. Erkenwald and Ethelburga came from a royal family in the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Lindsey.

It is said that Ethelburga, who was a Christian, chose to become a nun. She wanted to avoid marrying King Edwin of Northumbria, who was not a Christian. Her brother Erkenwald founded Barking Abbey especially for her. The abbey was supported by princes from the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Essex. It was first dedicated to Saint Mary.

Ethelburga was the abbey's first abbess. Later, the abbey was dedicated to both Saint Mary and Saint Ethelburga. Saint Hildelitha, a nun from another country, taught Ethelburga and became abbess after her. Erkenwald himself died at the abbey in 693.

Important Abbesses and Kings

Saint Wulfhilda became abbess of Barking Abbey in the 10th century. She grew up at Wilton Abbey. King Edgar the Peaceful was interested in Wulfhilda. However, she wanted to live a religious life and refused his offers of marriage.

Wulfhilda became a nun. King Edgar then made her Abbess of Barking and gave the abbey many lands. Wulfhilda herself gave 20 villages to the abbey. She also started another monastery in Kent.

King Edgar's wife, Queen Ælfthryth, became jealous of Wulfhilda. After her husband died, she removed Wulfhilda as Abbess of Barking. However, Wulfhilda was later put back in charge by King Edgar's son, King Æthelred the Unready.

Another story says that Queen Ælfthryth removed Wulfhilda after nuns complained. This version says the Queen, not her son, put Wulfhilda back in charge twenty years later.

Saint Dunstan, who was the Archbishop of Canterbury, changed Barking Abbey. From then on, it followed the Rule of St. Benedict.

After the Norman Conquest

When the Norman conquest of England happened in 1066, Æfgiva was the abbess. King William the Conqueror confirmed her control of the abbey. He gave her a special royal paper in late 1066. King William stayed at Barking Abbey while he built the Tower of London. It was also at the abbey that King William met with important English leaders.

Queen Maud/Matilda, who was the wife of King Henry I, paid for two stone bridges and a causeway (a raised road) to be built. These were over parts of the River Lea in Stratford-by-Bow. Barking Abbey was the closest to these bridges. So, the queen gave the abbey the job of keeping the bridges in good repair. She also gave them land to pay for future repairs.

Later, another abbey was built closer to the bridges. The Abbess of Barking then gave the job of bridge repair to this new abbey. This caused a disagreement between the two abbeys that lasted until 1315. They finally agreed that Barking Abbey would pay the other abbey £200. In return, the other abbey would maintain the bridges and pay Barking Abbey a small yearly rent.

Mary Becket, the sister of Saint Thomas Becket, became abbess of Barking in 1173. This was done to make up for her brother's murder.

Barking Abbey was known as a place where women could learn and write. In the 12th century, Clemence of Barking, a nun there, wrote important works. She wrote a special story about St Catherine of Alexandria, a saint linked to women's learning.

Before 1214, the King usually chose the abbesses of Barking. But after pressure from the Pope, King John allowed the nuns to vote for their abbess. However, the king later claimed the right to choose one nun to join the abbey every time a new king took the throne.

The abbey's special status gave it many rights. The abbess was more important than all other abbesses in England. She was also one of four abbesses who had to provide military service to the king. The abbess performed these duties for King Henry III and King Edward I.

In 1291, records showed the abbey had an income of over £300 a year.

Elizabeth de Burgh, the Queen of Scots, was held at Barking Abbey from 1313 to 1314. She had been captured by the English.

In 1377, a large part of the abbey's land near the River Thames was flooded. This caused serious damage, and the abbey never fully recovered. The land was ruined, and fixing the dykes (walls to hold back water) was very expensive.

By 1382, the abbey's lands were still flooded. Their yearly income had dropped to 400 marks. Even 32 years after the flood, in 1409, the land had not been fixed. The abbey had spent over £2,000 trying to save it. About 720 acres of land were lost. The king tried to help the abbey by releasing them from some payments and allowing them to force workers to help. But the land was never fully reclaimed.

In 1381, Elizabeth Chaucer became a nun at the abbey. She was the daughter of the famous poet Geoffrey Chaucer. When Elizabeth joined, John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster paid over £51 for the event.

During Katherine de la Pole's time as abbess, King Henry VI's council sent young Edmund and Jasper Tudor to be raised at the abbey. These boys were Henry VI's half-brothers. They were educated at Barking under Abbess Katherine's care. Edmund later became the father of King Henry VII, who became king in 1485.

In 1462, the abbey's water supply was taken over by John Rigby. He repaired the broken water pipe and then demanded the abbey pay a yearly fee for water. Abbess Katherine de la Pole was unhappy and worked to find a new, independent water source from their own spring.

In 1535, records showed Barking Abbey's income was over £1,084. This made it the third wealthiest nunnery in England.

The Abbey's Closure

Barking Abbey was closed in 1539 as part of King Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries. The abbess and 30 nuns formally gave up the abbey on November 14, 1539. They were all given yearly payments 12 days later. The abbess received 200 marks a year.

After it closed, the abbey was torn down, and much of its wealth was sold. Demolition began in June 1540 and took about 18 months. Only the abbey's north gate and Curfew Tower were left standing. Records show that £744 was made from selling the abbey's lead. The abbey's eleven bells were sold for £122. Other goods, grain, and cattle brought in £182. The abbey also had valuable jewels and silver.

Some of the abbey's building materials were reused. For example, some lead was used to fix the roof of Greenwich Palace. Some stone was used to build King Henry VIII's new manor in Dartford.

What Remains Today

The Curfew Tower

In 1551, King Edward VI gave the abbey site to Edward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln. After that, the site was used as a quarry (for stone) and a farm. The North Gate was taken down around 1885. Today, only the Curfew Tower and the outlines of the abbey's foundations remain.

Most of the abbey's remains are buried underground. The parts you can see today were built in the 20th century to show how the abbey was laid out. However, some original walls of the abbey church still stand several feet high. A part of the local area is named Abbey after the ruins. The ruins are in a public park called Abbey Green.

The Curfew Tower

The Curfew Tower, also known as the Fire Bell Gate, was one of the abbey's three main entrances. It is the only part of the abbey that is not in ruins. The first tower was built in 1370, but the current tower was built around 1460. Above the gateway is "The Chapel of the Holy Rood," named for a 12th-century stone cross inside it.

The tower has been repaired many times. In 1955-56, the chapel was redecorated, and windows were fixed. In 2005-06, the tower had major repairs costing £130,000. Its roof was replaced, and its stone walls were repaired. The chapel inside was redecorated again.

The tower is a Grade-II* Listed building, meaning it's very important. It is also featured on the coat of arms of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham.

London Bridge Stones

In 2007, two small stones from the old medieval London Bridge were made into a sculpture. It stands in front of St Margaret's church, facing the Barking Abbey ruins. This was part of several public artworks placed in Barking Town Centre.

Burials at Barking Abbey

Many important people were buried at Barking Abbey, including:

• Æthelburh of Barking
• Hildelith
• Torchtgyd
• Wulfhilda of Barking

List of Abbesses

Here are some of the abbesses who led Barking Abbey:

Gallery

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  The ruins

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  Another view of the ruins

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  The ruins with Abbey Retail Park and Canary Wharf in the background

See also

In Spanish: Abadía de Barking para niños