Brentwood: Celebrations to mark 900th anniversary of Colchester Abbey

Abbey Gatehouse

On Friday 22 May, Bishop Alan Williams, Bishop of Brentwood, will attend an event to mark the 900th anniversary of the dedication of the Benedictine Abbey of St John in Colchester. The Anglican Bishop of Colchester, the Rt Rev Roger Morris, will also be present. Civil dignitaries will include Lord Petre, Lord Lieutenant of Essex; Sir Bob Russell, the Mayor of Colchester, Cllr John Elliott; Philip Wise, the Collections and Curatorial Manager at Colchester and Ipswich Museum Service; and Philip Crummy, the Director of Colchester Archaeological Trust. Representatives from the Benedictines, English Heritage, the headteachers of the local Catholic schools and priests from the Colchester parishes will also attend.

The Gatehouse is the last remaining part of the original Abbey, once the fourth largest in England. St John's Abbey was founded in 1095 by Eudo Dapifer, William the Conqueror's High Steward and Constable of Colchester Castle. The abbey made a major contribution to the development of medieval Colchester and became a wealthy and privileged house, despite losing part of its buildings to fire in 1133. In the late 14th and early 15th centuries, perhaps as a result of the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, the abbey strengthened its defences and the gatehouse was added as part of this revamping around 1400.

St John's was one of a handful of abbeys that refused to surrender to Henry VIII's Commissioners during the Dissolution, succumbing only after the execution of Abbot Thomas (aka John) Beche for treason. St John's Abbey Gatehouse is in the care of English Heritage and managed by Colchester Borough Council.

The local Colchester Catholic Heritage Group has been instrumental in the process of fundraising and gaining permissions necessary for its use. The first Mass since the martyrdom of Abbot Beche was celebrated in the building on the anniversary of his death on 1st December 2012 and a plaque recording his execution was recently unveiled at the site.

Abbot Beche was beatified by Pope Leo XIII in 1895.The anniversary event will include prayers, a talk on the recently rediscovered architectural decorations on the front of the gatehouse and their meaning, and the martyrdom of the last abbot. There will also be on display an engraving of the Abbey (from Morant's The History and Antiquities of Colchester) which dates from around 1603, prior to the destruction by Cromwell in the 17th century Civil War period; and an engraving of the Gatehouse drawn by James Deane for the Society of Antiquarians in 1747 (also in Morant). After a tour of the site, the visitors will repair to the Charles Grey Room at the Castle Museum for refreshments.

They will then be able to view Pre-Reformation artefacts on display in the museum. A documentary film is to be made during the occasion by Luke Davies from Buckfast Abbey in Devon, which holds the last abbot's pectoral cross.