As I sit here in the depths of a dark, dull January day, I’ve been thinking back to 2019 and those hot, summer days before lockdown. That year I spent a week in London visiting Tudor places I hadn’t been to before. One of them was the London Charterhouse. Much has been written about this Carthusian priory, dating back to the 14th century, and it was on my list to visit.
It was a sunny, September day when I visited the house, in Smithfield, tucked away on a quiet street, away from the London traffic. I could not believe this peaceful spot was in a city. On reaching the reception desk, I was informed that sadly, there were no tours that day but I was welcome to walk in the Great Chamber. Renovated through funds from the National Lottery, and supported through other financial sources, I was able to enjoy the last surviving Tudor Great Chamber in London. Originally built by Edward North in the 1540s, and referred to as the ‘Throne Room,’ Elizabeth I held her first Privy Council there before being crowned Queen of England.
As I gazed through the windows down onto the orchard trees, heavy with apples, I decided to go out into the gardens next. Not a soul appeared to be around and so I stepped over the low, stone wall to take a look at a plaque that had caught my eye across the green. Coming up close, I saw that it listed the brothers who had suffered death 1535-1537, during the Dissolution of the Monasteries, amongst them John Houghton and Robert Lawrence. Both were priors at Beauvale Priory, (where ever that was) and I recalled their names from my reading about the divorce of King Henry and Katherine of Aragon.
Robert Lawrence had travelled to London, in 1535, to meet Thomas Cromwell, for he and his brothers could not swear to the Oath of Supremacy. This oath, whereby the King declared himself Head of the English Church, they simply could not, in good conscience, take. Cromwell refused to meet Lawrence, or listen to his plea, and had him imprisoned in the Tower of London as a traitor. John Houghton, Lawrence's predecessor as Prior at Beauvale, had also been imprisoned there. Later, they were executed for refusing to conform. Both became the first martyrs of the Reformation and were declared saints, in 1970.
Just as I was thinking about this, a loud shout made me jump and I turned around. A gentleman called out that I was trespassing and must return to the path immediately. He appeared frightfully cross and so I quickly went back. About half an hour later, appearing rather apologetic, he offered to take me on a private tour of the inner courtyard, and other places not normally seen by the public. I didn’t know a great deal about the place, except that during the reign of King Henry VIII, Thomas More often came to the priory for spiritual guidance, away from the machinations at court. After it was dissolved as a priory, King Henry VIII used it as a store.
My guide, who lived there, explained that after the dissolution of the monasteries it was rebuilt, and became one of the most important houses in Tudor London. In 1564 Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk bought the place and re-named it Howard House. It has been a boys’ school and is now alms houses, which remain to this day. The residents of the alms house are known as ‘Brothers’. This is just a traditional term for those living there and acknowledges the past when there was a monastery on the site.
We then had a splendid time discussing King Henry and Anne Boleyn, and how she, herself, was angry that the money from the dissolved monasteries hadn’t reached the schools, as she intended. Anne was all for reform, but reform that would result in a better education for everyone. The king and Cromwell, of course, had other ideas and the money went into the royal coffers.
When I finally made my way back home, I could not help but think what a wonderful place the Charterhouse would be to live. It had been a truly fascinating place to visit.
Time passed, and over a year later, I was asked by my cousin if I’d like to meet her for tea. I was up in the Midlands and as I’m always up for tea and cake, she suggested the Gatehouse Tea Rooms in the heart of D H Lawrence country. I’d never heard of the tearoom and tapped the postcode into my satnav, and drove off. As it was raining when I got there, we quickly ran into a delightful, oak-beamed room and ordered tea and lemon cake. Afterwards, since the downpour had stopped, my cousin suggested a walk around the priory. What priory? I asked. She said that this was the ruined Beauvale Priory, in Nottinghamshire. I thought for a moment. Where had I seen that name before? Then it came to me. On the London Charterhouse plaque. I had come, (quite without intention) to the actual priory where John Houghton and Robert Lawrence had once lived.
Beauvale Priory was founded in 1343 by Nicholas de Cantilupe, one of only nine priories to be built in England dedicated to the Carthusian Order of monks. The monks lived a silent life at Beauvale for 200 years until the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The community survived peacefully living a life of worship and work until the disruption of the Reformation.
There is little left of the ruins now, but there are some remains of the church, the chapter-house and cloisters, the Prior’s house, and the gatehouse (now the tea-room.) As we wandered around, I thought of the journey the monks had made to London, to plead their cause. Did they really believe they would be allowed to return to the peace of Beauvale without swearing the oath?
As I got back into my car, I felt subdued. But before long I was thinking that somehow I always managed to end up somewhere with a Tudor connection. Two places, nearly five hundred years and a hundred miles apart, came together perfectly in a moment – and all through a random invitation to join my cousin for tea.
The Charterhouse
Charterhouse Square, London
EC1M 6AN
thecharterhouse.org
Beauvale Abbey Farm, New Road, Moorgreen, Nottingham NG16 2AA
Charterhouse Hospital c.1770
The Great Chamber.
Plaque at London Charterhouse.
Alms Houses London Charter House.
Beauvale Priory.
Stone Beauvale Priory.