Lacock Abbey, South West, England

Ela, Countress of Salisbury was a ward of Richard I and was brought up in his Court, as she was countess of Salisbury in her own right. While she was still a child, her marriage was arranged to the illegitimate son of King Henry II, William Longespee, who, although illegitimate, was half brother to Richard I and King John. 

Ela, Countess of Salisbury and her husband William Longespee were involved in the building of Salisbury Cathedral and laid the fourth and fifth foundation stones of the building.  William died before the cathedral was completed but he was buried in the Lady Chapel at Salisbury and is the first person to have been buried there.  They seem to have had a happy marriage and had eight children together.  When William went missing abroad, Ela refused to entertain any suitors, stating she had had a vision that he would return, perhaps out of love or simply self-preservation. Either way, she was correct and William did indeed return home safely.

After Williams death, Ela took legal measures to found an Augustinian nunnery at Lacock, and a monks house at Hinton Charterhouse in his memory.  The nunnery was primarily built between 1240 and 1280, and she herself took vows in 1237, later becoming the first Abbess of Lacock in 1240. She successfully obtained rights to hold markets and fairs and Lacock has held the right to hold a weekly market since the 1240’s.  She served as Abbess for 15 years, before her death at the age of 75. Two of Ela’s granddaughters later became nuns at Lacock.

Lacock remained a small religious community of nuns whose number never exceeded 25. In 1474 there were only 14 nuns at the Abbey.  They would have certainly been outnumbered by the servants as we know there was a steward, reeve, bailiff, hayward, ploughmen, shepherds, cowherds, goatherd, wagoners, swineherd, fisherman, forester, swanherd, and carter also working the lands.  Other jobs were given as head porter, head launderer, janitor, hosteller, palfreyman, porter, smith, granger, miller, baker, brewer, larderer, poulterer and dairymaid. There would also have been many other servants working under them. 

The cloister dates from the 15th Century and replaces an earlier cloister which had contained a wooden roof supported on Purbeck marble columns.  Traces of the corbels for the old cloister can still be seen in the west wall.

What remains of the medieval Abbey today is the cloisters, chapter house, sacristy and warming room as well as other monastic rooms. These remain virtually unaltered but they now served as the literal foundation for the main house, which was built on top of them. It is this that has ensured their survival and their maintenance.  

In 1535 the Abbey was visited by the King’s Commissioners, who found that there was no disorder, and that the nuns knew and understood the rules.  The revenues were adequate and on payment of a fine, they were allowed to remain. In spite of this however, the Abbey was suppressed in 1539 but it was one of the last of the religious monasteries to be closed. Unlike other Abbeys it seems to have closed peacefully and the nuns were given pensions.

Shortly after the Abbey was dissolved in 1539, it was sold to Sir William Sharington for £783. He set about converting it into a house.  He demolished the Abbey church but it was his decision to keep the Abbey buildings as they were and build on top of them, that has ensured their survival. Although he converted the medieval Abbey, it was no accident that the buildings survive. Unlike many other great houses which were built on Abbey lands, Sharington must have seen the beauty in the buildings themselves because he intentionally preserved them. 

It is Sharington who built the substantial stable block, as well as the tower in the southeast corner. While the work he did at Lacock was substantial, there is more to be found in his character than his architectural interests. Sharington had held various positions at court but he was made Vice-Treasurer of the Bristol Mint in 1546. It was after this that things got interesting. He became involved in political intrigues and used his position to lend money to Lord Thomas Seymour, who was the Lord High Admiral. This money would be used against Edward VI and the Protector Somerset.  To do this, he obtained the money by clipping the coins and debasing the coinage.  He was arrested in 1549 and confessed, putting all the blame on Seymour.  Sharington was attainted and his lands were forfeited to the Crown, however he was later pardoned on a payment of £8,000 and regained his lands including Lacock. 

As a photographer I cannot talk about Lacock without mentioning William Henry Fox Talbot, because if it weren’t for him well I may not be doing this.  Fox Talbot was born to Lady Elisabeth Fox Strangways and William Davenport Talbot, in Melbury Dorset in 1800. The family home was Lacock Abbey. William’s father died before he was one year old, leaving him as an only child. From his early life he experimented with physics and chemistry. He was also an avid archaeologist. What he is famous for however, is that in 1834 he started experiments into what he called ‘photogenic drawings.’ In 1835, using a lattice window at the abbey as his subject, he produced the first photographic negative.  Although he is thought to be the father of photography, it is the ability to reproduce an image by the use of a negative that he invented. The first images he took were of Lacock Abbey.  The Abbey today also contains a museum of photography based around his life and invention.

In 1916 the property at Lacock with its 284 acres of land came into the hands of Matilda Theresa Talbot.  In 1944, before her death, she bequeathed the house and all its lands to the National Trust who still maintain and preserve it today.