| The Community
Today
In 1835 the Benedictines
moved from Orrell Mount and settled near Rugby. They built Princethorpe
Priory and the order opened a school. Dwindling vocations and changes
in the education system meant that by the mid twentieth century it was
impractical for the order to maintain a school and property of that size.
In 1966 the community moved to Fernham in Oxfordshire where they remain
today.
The modern day nuns
still keep the four sous, the only money the order had on their arrival
in Britain. They also sing the “Domine salvum fac regem” daily in
remembrance of the kindness shown them by the Prince of Wales in 1792.
In Wakefield the Hall
they once stayed in is long demolished but traces of their stay are still
to be found in the Heath area. The Priest's House still bears that
name and can be seen next to the gate-
posts which once led
to the Hall. |
The Priest's House
in 2001
|
The graves of the various
nuns who passed away during the stay at Old Heath Hall can be found in
the churchyard at Kirkthorpe, not far from the site of the hall.
They bear no names but simply the initials of the deceased, together with
the O.S.B. denoting Order of St. Benedict, a simple cross and the letters
RIP. The exception is Emilia Monteira who died aged only 15, a novice
at the convent.
The nuns' graves at Kirkthorpe |