The London Charterhouse
The Charterhouse is a former Carthusian monastery in London, located between Barbican and Smithfield Market, and to the north of what is now Charterhouse Square. In English, a Carthusian monastery is called a "Charterhouse" (derived from the Grande Chartreuse, the original monastery of the order), and thus the Carthusian monastery in London was referred to as the "London Charterhouse." As per Carthusian custom, the twenty-five monks each had their own small building and garden.
Since the dissolution of the monasteries in the 16th century the site has served as a private mansion, a boys’ school and an almshouse, which it remains to this day.
Residents of the almshouse are known as ‘Brothers’, which is a purely traditional term acknowledging the Charterhouse’s monastic past.
The story begins in 1348 during the Black Death, when the land was used as a burial ground for victims of plague. In 1371, the Charterhouse was built – a Carthusian monastery, which flourished throughout the later medieval and early Tudor period.
The life of the monastery came to an end in 1527 with King Henry VIII’s Reformation.
The head prior John Houghton refused to sign the Act of Supremacy, written to make King Henry VIII head of the Church instead of the Pope. Houghton and two other monks were hanged, drawn and quartered for their resistance.
With the dissolution of the monasteries, the Charterhouse became a mansion for wealthy noblemen and a refuge for royalty. Elizabeth I met the Privy Council here in the days before her coronation in 1558 and James I used the Great Chamber to create 130 new Barons before he was crowned. But it was in 1611 that Thomas Sutton bought the Charterhouse and established the foundation that now bears his name.
Thomas Sutton’s will provided for up to 80 Brothers: ‘either decrepit or old captaynes either at sea or at land, maimed or disabled soldiers, merchants fallen on hard times, those ruined by shipwreck of other calamity’ as well as Charterhouse school.
Since then, the Charterhouse story has continued. Wellington, Gladstone and Cromwell have all been Governors. The Charterhouse appears in the writings of Daniel Defoe, Charles Dickens and William Makepeace Thackeray.
Sources:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Charterhouse
livinglondonhistory.com/8-secrets-of-the-charterhouse/
100x: The 2024 Edition
12/100 London landmarks by night
Notes: Not handheld: camera was resting precariously on the locked iron gate. Fringing removed later in Affinity Photo 2
The London Charterhouse
The Charterhouse is a former Carthusian monastery in London, located between Barbican and Smithfield Market, and to the north of what is now Charterhouse Square. In English, a Carthusian monastery is called a "Charterhouse" (derived from the Grande Chartreuse, the original monastery of the order), and thus the Carthusian monastery in London was referred to as the "London Charterhouse." As per Carthusian custom, the twenty-five monks each had their own small building and garden.
Since the dissolution of the monasteries in the 16th century the site has served as a private mansion, a boys’ school and an almshouse, which it remains to this day.
Residents of the almshouse are known as ‘Brothers’, which is a purely traditional term acknowledging the Charterhouse’s monastic past.
The story begins in 1348 during the Black Death, when the land was used as a burial ground for victims of plague. In 1371, the Charterhouse was built – a Carthusian monastery, which flourished throughout the later medieval and early Tudor period.
The life of the monastery came to an end in 1527 with King Henry VIII’s Reformation.
The head prior John Houghton refused to sign the Act of Supremacy, written to make King Henry VIII head of the Church instead of the Pope. Houghton and two other monks were hanged, drawn and quartered for their resistance.
With the dissolution of the monasteries, the Charterhouse became a mansion for wealthy noblemen and a refuge for royalty. Elizabeth I met the Privy Council here in the days before her coronation in 1558 and James I used the Great Chamber to create 130 new Barons before he was crowned. But it was in 1611 that Thomas Sutton bought the Charterhouse and established the foundation that now bears his name.
Thomas Sutton’s will provided for up to 80 Brothers: ‘either decrepit or old captaynes either at sea or at land, maimed or disabled soldiers, merchants fallen on hard times, those ruined by shipwreck of other calamity’ as well as Charterhouse school.
Since then, the Charterhouse story has continued. Wellington, Gladstone and Cromwell have all been Governors. The Charterhouse appears in the writings of Daniel Defoe, Charles Dickens and William Makepeace Thackeray.
Sources:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Charterhouse
livinglondonhistory.com/8-secrets-of-the-charterhouse/
100x: The 2024 Edition
12/100 London landmarks by night
Notes: Not handheld: camera was resting precariously on the locked iron gate. Fringing removed later in Affinity Photo 2