Littlemore Priory scandals

Littlemore Priory scandals took place between 1517 and 1518. They involved accusations of sexual immorality and sometimes brutal violence. The scandal that came to light in 1517 became enough of a cause célèbre to contribute to the priory’s eventual suppression in 1525.

About Littlemore Priory scandals in brief

The Littlemore Priory scandals took place between 1517 and 1518. They involved accusations of sexual immorality and sometimes brutal violence among the Benedictine nuns and their prioress at St Nicholas’ Priory in Oxfordshire. The scandal that came to light in 1517 became enough of a cause célèbre to contribute to the priory’s eventual suppression in 1525. The end of the affair is unknown, as records have not survived. Historians consider it likely it was behaviour such as was found at Littlemore that encouraged Cardinal Wolsey’s suppression of a number of houses in an attempt to improve the image of the church in England during the early 1520s. The priory was founded in the 12th century by Robert de Sandford in the latter years of the reign of King Stephen. By the later Middle Ages, it was reported that the seven nuns of Littlemore were not living according to their rule. In 1445, agents of William Alnwick, Bishop of Lincoln, reported the nuns failed to fast and ate meat every day. Furthermore, the prioreess, Alice Wakeley, regularly received a Cistercian monk and a lay clerk in her rooms to indulge in drinking sessions. The house became a farmstead and was gradually pulled down. One original building remained in the 21st century, and has been used as a museum since the 1970s. It is now owned by the Church of England and is open to the public for guided tours.

For more information, visit www.littlemorepriory.org.uk or go to the website of St Nicholas’ Priory, in Littlemore, Oxfordshire, on the south bank of the River Thames, and on the River Avon. For confidential support call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details. In the U.S. call the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255 or visit the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/. In the UK, contact the Samaritans on 08457 909090 or click here for more information. For confidential support on suicide matters in the UK and the UK, visit a Samaritans local branch, or click here for the U.S.-based Samaritans. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, on the University of England and Wales, or the University of Oxford and the University of Oxford and The University of Oxford in the UK on the same site of the same  Continent, for £1,000 or £2,000.  For confidential help in the United States, call the National suicide Prevention Line on 1-844-788-8457 or http www.sophisticationlifeline on http://www sophie-solution.org on behalf of the British Samaritans, including the British Church of England and Wales, in the UK and Europe on 0800-909090.

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