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Information about Torre Abbey

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A blue plaque welcoming visitors to Torre Abbey
Torre Abbey comprises two Grade I listed buildings in Torquay. It was founded in 1196 as a monastery for premonstratensian canons when William de Brewer, lord of the manor of Torre, gave them the land. It soon became the wealthiest in England.

The monks surrendered to King Henry VIII's commissioner in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. This resulted in a widescale demolition of the buildings, and all items of value, including the lead from the roof, were taken. The medieval cloister was mostly unscathed and, in 1598, was converted into a house for Thomas Ridgeway. After a succession of various owners, the house became the possession of the Cary family in 1662. It stayed in the family until 1930 when financial difficulties forced Commander Henry Cary to sell it to Torquay Borough Council. It has since been used as a municipal art gallery, the mayor's parlour and, during World War II, it was used by the Royal Air Force.

The Torre Abbey chapel is sometimes used for public ceremonies such as funerals and christenings, though it does not have a wedding license.

Buildings

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The Spanish Barn was used to hold 397 prisoners from the Spanish Armada, as described in the plaque above the door (image).
The main abbey comprises two Grade I listed buildings. Though the church is little more than a ruin, the west and south sides of the cloisters are still standing. The gatehouse dates from around 1380, and the barrel vault above the chapel dates from the 15th century. The tithe barn, built along with the abbey in 1196, is known as "The Spanish Barn" after it was used to hold 397 prisoners of war from the Spanish Armada in 1588.

Reconstruction and restoration

Around 1740 the buildings underwent extensive alterations, giving them a Georgian remodelling that is mostly intact today. The Cary family invested in further reconstructions throughout the 19th century, including the construction of a small brewery.

The abbey was closed on April 18 2006. Funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, the abbey is undergoing further restoration and is scheduled to reopen in summer 2008.

Contents and displays

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A plaque showing a portrait of Agatha Christie.
Torre Abbey contains many collections of historic artifacts, including 18th and 19th century English glass, silver and pewter. One room is fitted out as an approximation of the study of Agatha Christie, the famed novelist that lived much of her life in Torquay.

Haunting

As with many historic buildings, there have been various reports and alleged sightings of three ghosts inside Torre Abbey – a headless monk, an 18th century lady and a Spanish lady searching for her long-lost love. The Haunting of Torre Abbey by Carole Bugge, a 2000 novel featuring Sherlock Holmes (ISBN 0-312-24557-2), sees the detective investigating ghosts in the buildings after being called in by Lord Charles Cary.

References

'listed building' refers to a building or other structure officially designated as being of special architectural, historical or cultural significance. It is a widely used status, applied to around half a million buildings.
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Torquay

Torquay ()
|240px|Torquay (

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Monastery (plural: Monasteries), a term derived from the Greek word μοναστήριον (monastērion), denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer (e.g.
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The Norbertines, also known as the Premonstratensians (OPraem) and in England, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), are a Christian religious order of Augustinian canons founded at Prémontré near Laon in 1120 by Saint Norbert, afterwards
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canon (from the Latin canonicus, itself derived from the Greek κανωνικος 'relating to a rule') is a priest who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule (canon).
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Motto
Dieu et mon droit   (French)
"God and my right"
Anthem
No official anthem specific to England — the anthem of the United Kingdom is "God Save the Queen".
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Henry VIII
King of England, King of Ireland, Prince of Wales

Reign 22 April1509 – 28 January1547
Coronation 24 June 1509
Born 28 May 1491(1491--)
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Dissolution of the Monasteries, referred to by Roman Catholic writers as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the formal process during the English Reformation by which Henry VIII confiscated the property of the monastic institutions in England, Wales and Ireland between
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cloister (from Latin claustrum) is a part of cathedral, monastic and abbey architecture. A cloister consists usually of four corridors, with a courtyard or garth in the middle. It is intended to be both covered from the rain, but open to the air.
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Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. The RAF was formed on 1 April 1918 and has since taken a significant role in British military history since then, playing a large part in World War II and in conflicts such as the recent war in Iraq.
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A funeral is a ceremony marking a person's death.
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church is an association of people who share a particular belief system. The term church originated from Greek "κυριακή" - "kyriake",[1] meaning "of the lord".
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Barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault or a wagon vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance.
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15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500.

Events

  • 1402: Ottoman and Timurid Empires fight at the Battle of Ankara resulting in Timur's capture of Bayezid I.
  • 1402: The conquest of the Canary Islands signals the beginning of the Spanish Empire.

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A tithe barn was a type of barn used in England and Germany in the Middle Ages for storing the tithes - a tenth of the farm's produce which had to be given to the church. Abbey barns, large warehouse-like barns found on Abbey estates, are often mistakenly referred to as tithe barns.
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prisoner of war (POW, PoW, or PW) is a combatant who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict.

Ancient times


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Spanish Armada or Great Armada (Old Spanish: Grande y Felicísima Armada, meaning "Great and Most Fortunate Navy", also known as the Armada Invencible
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Georgian era is a period of British history, normally defined as including the reigns of the kings George I, George II, George III and George IV, i.e. covering the period from 1714 to 1830, (with the sub-period of the Regency, defined by the Regency of George IV as Prince of Wales
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For the periodical, see .
The 19th Century (also written XIX century) lasted from 1801 through 1900 in the Gregorian calendar. It is often referred to as the "1800s.
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brewery can be a building or place that produces beer, or a business (brewing company) whose trade is the production and sale of beer. Breweries can take up multiple city blocks, or be a collection of equipment in a homebrewer's kitchen.
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April 18 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

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National Lottery is the United Kingdom's largest lottery. It is operated by Camelot Group, to whom the licence was granted in 1994, 2001 and again in 2007. The lottery is regulated by The National Lottery Commission.
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Agatha Christie

Born: 15 September 1890(1890--)
Torquay, Devon, England
Died: 12 January 1976 (aged 87)
Cholsey, Oxfordshire, England
Occupation: Novelist
Genres: Murder mystery, Crime fiction
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ghost is defined as the apparition of a deceased person, frequently similar in appearance to that person, and usually encountered in places she or he frequented, or in association with the person's former belongings.
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Motto
"Plus Ultra"   (Latin)
"Further Beyond"
Anthem
"Marcha Real" 1
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Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. He is the creation of Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
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August 31 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

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