Mount Grace Priory

The ruins of Mount Grace Priory represent a significant example of a Carthusian priory, dating to 1398 with further development in the 15th century. The substantial remains are constructed from ashlar and coursed squared stone.

The layout includes a great cloister to the north, a central church, and fragmentary remains of the lay brothers’ quarters to the south. A west gateway connects to Mount Grace House (listed separately). The church ruins encompass a nave, north and south transepts with a central crossing and tower, and a chancel. The nave is largely ruinous; the west wall features a moulded pointed-arched doorway below a large four-centred arched window, both with hood moulds. The central tower rises two stages above the roofline, featuring offset diagonal buttresses, tall pointed-arched, cusped belfry openings with hood moulds, a moulded eaves band, and an embattled parapet with remains of pinnacles at each corner. The south transept exhibits offset diagonal buttresses and a large Perpendicular window opening with a hood mould. The chancel retains portions of the north wall with three high four-centred arched windows. The crossing contains clustered responds with moulded capitals supporting moulded pointed arches with hood moulds.

The great cloister, measuring approximately 270 feet by 230 feet, displays the remains of single cells, each with its attached garden, designed for around 20 monks. The courtyard wall stands to first-floor height, with cell front walls rising to two stories. Corbels are present at first-floor level, indicative of a former covered walkway. Each cell has a four-centred arched doorway, accompanied by a right-angled food opening to the side. A complete monk’s cell, restored around 1901, stands to the north of the cloister, constructed over two storeys. It features a central four-centred arched doorway with a hood mould and a food opening to the right, a first-floor band, stone coping, and a graduated stone slate roof. Behind each cell are garden walls and a lavatory set within the wall, accessible via a chamfered doorway. A wellhead with a gabled vaulted roof is located on the east side of the cloister. Remains of an oriel window are found to the north-west of the nave, likely related to the Prior’s house. A main entrance, consisting of three pointed arches, is attached to the church's south-west side and connects to Mount Grace House.

This priory is considered the best preserved Carthusian house in England, founded in 1398 by Thomas of Holland, Duke of Surrey, and is the second-to-last of seven such institutions built between 1343 and 1414.