Dureford Abbey

The founder and other local landowners granted much additional land in the area to the abbey and the unlimited use of a quarry from which to construct the monastic buildings. In 1317, the abbot complained that the abbey had been robbed. A royal visit by the King in 1324 put a further strain on the finances, as did repeated incidents of theft and malicious damage, which left the community reportedly poverty stricken by 1335. The next century was the same; in 1417, the tower of Abbey Church was struck by lightning and collapsed. Further, an abbot was forcibly ejected from his position by canons from Dureford and from Bayham Abbey. He apparently left in fear for his life, and additionally, the…