Bisham Abbey in Berkshire, about 50 miles west of London, is the name of the manor house of Bisham, taken from the now lost monastery which once stood alongside. The abbey church proper, previously Bisham Priory, was the traditional resting place of many Earls of Salisbury. The complex surrounding the extant buildings is now one of five National Sports Centres run on behalf of Sport England.

Early history

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The manor house was built around 1260 as a community house for the Knights Templar, with the foundation stone laid by King Edward II of England himself. The brass plaque once affixed to it can still be seen at Denchworth. When the Templars were suppressed in 1307, King Edward II took over the manorial rights, granting them to various relatives.

In 1310 the building was used as a place of confinement for Queen Elizabeth of the Scots, wife of King Robert the Bruce, along with her step-daughter Princess Marjorie and sister-in-law, Lady Christine of Carrick. They had been captured on the Isle of Rathlin during the Scottish Wars of Succession, and were placed in the charge of the King’s Yeoman, John Bentley, for two years, until removed to Windsor.

In 1335 the manor was bought by William Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury and in 1337 he founded Bisham Priory for Austin Canons alongside his manor house. When William died, he was buried at the priory, as were many other Earls of Salisbury, including Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, who was buried in April 1471.

Despite holding the relics of Saints Cosmas and Damian, the priory never really became a centre of pilgrimage: many other churches also held relics of the same saints, including two different locations which both claimed to have their skulls.

Dissolution

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Bisham Priory was dissolved on 5 July 1537, but six months later, on 18 December, it was refounded as a Benedictine abbey. This was not to last though as it was finally dissolved on 9 July 1538. The abbot of Bisham, John Cordery, is said to have cursed the building thus: "As God is my witness, this property shall ne’er be inherited by two direct successors, for its sons will be hounded by misfortune", as he was dragged from it. Nothing remains of the abbey church or its associated buildings.

Post-Dissolution

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Henry VIII granted the adjoining manor house to Anne of Cleves as part of her divorce settlement from him, and it was later bought by the Hoby family, who lived there until 1768. Elizabeth I was a regular visitor in the time of the Hoby family.

Modern History

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The manor house is a Grade One listed building, now run by Leisure Connection Ltd on behalf of Sport England, and is one of five National Sports Centres.

The facilities include:-

• A £1.2 million international hockey pitch
• An indoor tennis centre featuring four tennis courts
• Three new outdoor French clay tennis courts and four new acrylic tennis courts
• A 2-dojo judo hall for the British Judo Association
• A fully-equipped elite strength and conditioning facility
• A large community gym including two squash courts
• A remodelled nine-hole par three golf course
• A sports therapy performance centre which enables elite level sports science and medicine services to be provided on site
• Accommodation for up to 94 athletes

References

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• Time-Life Books, Mysteries of the Unknown: Hauntings, 1989, ISBN 0-8094-6352-0
• Royal Berkshire History

Augustinian monasteries | Benedictine monasteries | Medieval Knights Templar | Churches in Berkshire | Historic houses in Berkshire | Monasteries in England