Rusper Priory facts for kids

Rusper Priory was a special kind of monastery in West Sussex, England. It was home to Benedictine nuns, who were women who dedicated their lives to religious service.

History of Rusper Priory

The priory was officially started around the year 1200. A powerful person named William de Braose helped support it. He was like a sponsor or a main supporter for the priory.

Early Years and Growth

The priory was probably built for twelve nuns, led by a "prioress." A prioress is like the head nun in charge. The priory received money from several churches. These churches included Warnham, Ifield, and Selham. Later, John de Braose also added the church of Horsham to their income.

By 1291, the priory's total income was more than £44. This was a good amount of money back then.

Decline and Closure

After a terrible sickness called the Black Death spread in the 1300s, the priory started to have problems. The number of nuns began to drop. In 1442, there were eight nuns. By 1478, there were only five. The number kept going down, with just four nuns in 1521 and three in 1527.

In 1535, a survey called the Valor Ecclesiasticus estimated the priory's yearly value at £39.

The priory was finally closed down in 1537. At that time, there were only two people left: the prioress and one other nun. Both of them were very old. They also had two women who worked as servants.

After the Closure

The last prioress, Elizabeth Sydney, received a pension of 100 shillings. This was like a retirement payment. The last remaining nun received a gift of 60 shillings. These two nuns had made their religious promises back in 1484.

The land and buildings of the priory were given to Sir Robert Southwell and his wife Margaret. The old priory buildings were later replaced by a new building. This new building was called The Nunnery. It was changed many times over the years.

Today, the house on the site is still called The Nunnery. However, the current building was built in the 1800s.