Titchfield Abbey

The exit in the corner probably led into a slipe, which in turn communicated with the rear dorter, the drain from which and old foundations of the east wing were discovered in 1911 and inserted in the revised plan.

At Titchfield Abbey, the nearest religious house of the same order to Tor, this cloister, on the east side of the garth, was the place of interment for the abbots.

The first abbot of Titchfield was buried in front of the chapter house entrance, and the others in succession southward.

Nothing we have noticed points to this site having been similarly used at Tor, and it is not yet known where the early abbots of Tor were buried.

From the dimensions of this building, convenience for drainage, proximity to the barn for fodder, and the necessity for large accommodation for the horses of visitors with their numerous retinue, it is conjectured that the lower story was the fordon or fold for stabling.

The floor above would be occupied by the lay brethren who did the menial work of the abbey and looked after the numerous livestock.

An inventory of Titchfield Abbey made in the year 1420 mentions forty-eight horses and gives the total number of the quadrupeds owned by the abbey as one thousand four hundred and forty.

End of section eight.

PREFACE AND INTRODUCTION TO A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF TOR ABBEY, TORQUAY, DEVONSHIRE.

A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF TOR ABBEY, TORQUAY, DEVONSHIRE.

preface and introduction preface the cost of a third edition of this book has again been defrayed by the owner of tor abbey in order that the entire proceeds of sale may benefit the torbay hospital further excavation in nineteen eleven following suggestions made by the rev d h s cranage and others which the author cordially acknowledges resulted in the discovery of another entrance into the nave of the church from the garth the foundation of the rood-screen and cannon stalls and an interment with niche for effigy in the wall of north isle the examination of the ditch on the north side of the church was completed and a building adjoining the northwest corner of the church located the foundations of the daughter forming the east wing were traced and the level of the chapter-house floor definitely established by the discovery of two tiles in situ at a greater depth than had hitherto been suspected the foundation of the north cloister was found at one spot which gave the width of the covering of this side of the garth which hitherto it had been found impossible to trace the sites of the missing gate-houses were also examined all these details have been inserted in the revised plan the explanatory text corrected and added to and the author once more acknowledges with gratitude the debt the public owes to colonel carey for his zealous care of and interest in the site of the premonstratensian abbey of tor first edition august nineteen o seven second edition september nineteen o nine third edition july nineteen twelve hummers not chelston july nineteen twelve introduction torre abbey devonshire was founded by william brewer in the year eleven ninety six four canons of the premonstratention order the abbey was surrendered to king henry the eighth on the twenty fifth of april fifteen thirty nine when the revenue was returned as three hundred and ninety six pounds and eleven pence net approximating eight thousand pounds present value the largest income of any of the thirty-one abbeys and two nunneries owned by the primonst retention order in england and wales at the time of the dissolution in fifteen forty three henry the eighth granted the abbey to his favourite john st leger who sold it the same year to sir hugh pollard in fifteen eighty sir hugh pollard's grandson conveyed the property by deed to sir edward seymour of berry pomeroy in fifteen ninety nine thomas ridgeway ancestor of the earls of londonderry bought the whole estate in sixteen fifty three sir john stowell of buffy tracy bought part of the estate including torre abbey in sixteen sixty two the abbey ruins were purchased by sir george carey of new park hampshire in the hands of whose descendants it has remained william brewer was descended from rodolphus de brueria who held six manors as one of the followers of baldwin of exeter one of william the conqueror's generals he had one son william brewer the younger who died childless and was buried in the chancel of torre abbey church and five daughters the founder of tor abbey was the trusted supporter of four english kings henry the second richard the first john and henry the third and after taking a prominent part in the history of england retired to the cistercian abbey of dunkerswell founded by himself five years after tor and in twelve twenty seven was buried before the high altar the primonstratensian order was founded by norbert son of heribert count of genep in eleven twenty the first house was established near lannes seventy-five miles northeast of paris on a spot foreshown by the virgin mary in a vision to norbert from the french prmontre and latin prmonstratum the name of the order is derived saint norbert died in eleven thirty four and was buried at magdeburg which bishopric he had held for fourteen years in the year fifteen eighty two saint norbert was canonized by pope gregory the thirteenth in sixteen twenty seven his remains were translated to the primonstratensian abbey of strahow

near prague

at the end of the fifteenth century it was computed that no less than two thousand abbeys and nunneries in europe acknowledged the head of the order at there were twenty-one abbots of torre in the year fifteen hundred the community numbered besides the abbot eleven priests two deacons and four novitiates the present abbot-general is norbert martin scharginger abbot of schlagel abbey in higher austria there are nine abbeys in austria seven in belgium and one in holland in england there are at present three houses founded by the belgian abbey of tongerloo at crole and spalding in lincolnshire and in varley street manchester where the english head of the order abbot peter francis goudens resides there are also two smaller establishments at storrington in sussex and at bedworth in warwickshire founded by canons expelled from france the first abbey established in england in eleven forty six was at newhouse in lincolnshire of which not even the name remains welbeck abbey was the recognized chief house of the order in england torre abbey was colonized from this house by the first abbot adam and six canons and was the twenty-third premonstratensian abbey built in england with the possible exception of wendling in norfolk all the thirty-three houses were built within a period of eighty-five years eleven forty six to twelve thirty one during the subsequent three hundred years preceding the dissolution none was added the seven hundred and sixteen years during which this site has been known as torre abbey may be divided into two periods the three hundred and forty three years during which the buildings were occupied by the primonst retention canons and the subsequent three hundred and seventy three years as a private residence preface and introduction section one of a short description of torre abbey illustrated guide to torre abbey the entrance the approach to torre abbey from newton abbot or the north side was formerly by a much longer drive than at present along what is now the avenue road the entrance gates to which were at the junction of the avenue with the old mill road at the present entrance to the grounds of torre abbey are two modern lodges the first stands on the site of a former pond chiefly remembered by old inhabitants as the culminating scene of the annual easter monday revel when what is called the ducking of the lord mayor took place and a generally very inebriated lord of misrule finished his short term of office in the pond this was probably a very old custom in connection with the celebration of hope-tide when tossing or hocking as it was termed was indulged in hoke day easter monday was one of the two days appointed in the year for the payment of tribute and later tithes for the reparation of churches the other term being the day of salmon november the second it is possible therefore that at one time those who failed to produce the abbot's dues at hopetide were thus reminded of their obligations by his bailiffs this may have been the origin of a custom which the filling in of the pond long after the departure of the abbots has thus brought to an end the second lodge is built in the line of the original boundary wall which terminates on our left after passing the gates with the exception of an old drawing made in the year sixteen sixty two when sir george carey of new park purchased the demesne from john stowell one hundred and twenty three years after the dissolution and destruction of the abbey history throws no light upon the position and extent of the buildings the two missing gate-houses leland in the reign of king henry the eighth wrote an itinerary or account of his travels in which is a brief mention of this district he probably rested at tor as he evidently visited the abbey church and wrote in his diary in this priory be three fair gate-houses only one of these gatehouses stands to-day the site of the other two has long been a subject for conjecture as nothing now above ground indicates their position as a result of recent investigation it has been ascertained that when the boundary wall between the abbey grounds and the king's drive was built in eighteen seventy seven the workmen found old foundations of cross walls in two places so little was known then about the original buildings that beyond marvelling at the toughness of the masonry which at these two spots was partly utilised to carry the present wall little notice was taken of the discovery and it is only now after the extensive excavations recently made in the rest of the grounds and the knowledge thus gained of the general plan that we are confident that these old foundations x and xx in the plan mark the sites of the two missing gate-houses in the spring of nineteen eleven excavation disclosed the strong foundations of the one gate house at x twenty-five feet from the end of and in a line with the existing old wall the foundations apparently run right under what is now the king's drive at x x evidence of a building probably a large shed and a wall in which is incorporated part of a granite cider-mill were found a gravelled pathway at seven feet six inches below the level of the foot entrance of the modern gate-house was also uncovered if any trace of foundations of this gate-house exist they are at a considerable depth and under the large trees which render excavation difficult if not impossible the moat condit and drain on the left hand as we enter the grounds between a row of elm trees and the ivy-covered garden wall was formerly an open moat the source of the water which filled this moat and was thence carried by a covered conduit past the kitchen premises and straight to the sea was the subject of a special charter from william brewer the younger who gave ilsham and shippy collerton to the abbey the water came from what was then known as the spring of st petrox adjoining the kitchen of the court-house of tor and was subsequently augmented by other grants although the names of efrides well or ye side well near tor church and the shire well in the chelston vale have come down to us to which this grant certainly had no reference as they are mentioned in other deeds the site of the st petrocs spring and of the manor house of william brewer the younger is still unidentified the hard water spring still to be found in the meadow adjoining shippy lodge was the source of the fulford stream granted by roger de cockington soon after the foundation of the abbey the natural course of this water down the torn valley was diverted by the cutting of the railway in eighteen forty seven the introduction of the water supply from tottiford in eighteen fifty eight and the perfect sewerage system completed in eighteen seventy seven rendered this provision of torre abbey's founders out of date the moat and pond already mentioned were filled in and the long well-built conduit along which a man can comfortably crawl is now quite dry and doubtless gave rise to the legends that underground passages from the abbey existed in various directions the west front the drive leads to the west front of the abbey the first building surmounted with a cross of portland stone renewed during the recent extensive repairs has been used since the year seventeen seventy nine as a chapel

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to the north was the church wall with exception of a small door for processional purposes in the north-west corner and a second entrance discovered in nineteen eleven used by the canons to reach the stalls after much search a small portion of the foundation of the north cloister wall was found thirteen feet south of this entrance showing that the north cloister which would contain the carols was four feet wider than the other sides on the west was the wall of the guest-hall which in those days would have no windows overlooking the garth the cloister in the north-east corner of the garth is a doorway built in the wall of the south transept at this point five feet thick to withstand the thrust and weight of the church tower this door was the canon's entrance to the church and also was probably the only means of access to the dormitory by the stairway in the south transept the outside arching of the doorway is smaller than the inside the south side of the entrance is at right angles with the line of the wall but the north side splays inwards this with the enlarged inner arch was probably to allow the circular headed door to open inwards in the thickness of the wall the lines cut on the slate slab fixed in the wall are by the rev joseph reeve at one time vicar of chudleigh the exact shape of the stairway from the lower level of the garth was difficult to determine there were at least two steps up to this door the tiled floor of the cloister on the east side was one foot above the level of the garth from which it was separated by a stone foundation the remains of this wall are at one level with no trace of columns probably an upper tier of beer stone which has been removed carried the support to the roof a recess in the masonry formed by a strengthening of the west wall of the transept was probably used as the columna with gradi or shelves on which the manuscript books of the abbey were kept the adjoining gap in the wall can never have been an entrance two fragments of the tiled floor in situ showed that the arch is too low for such a purpose the discovery of the drain already mentioned coming from the transept and passing under the pier which has been since placed in the centre to support the wall suggested that this was a lavatory but subsequent consideration favours the probability that it was rather an ombree to contain books beyond the entrance to the chapter-house already noticed is the arched exit from the day-stairs descending from the daughter to the garth this has been closed with masonry since the dissolution and all trace of the stairway has been removed the exit in the corner probably led into a slipe which in turn communicated with the rear daughter the drain from which and old foundations of the east wing were discovered in nineteen eleven and inserted in the revised plan at titchfield abbey the nearest religious house of the same order to tor this cloister on the east side of the garth was the place of interment for the abbots the first abbot of titchfield was buried in front of the chapter-house entrance and the others in succession southward nothing we have noticed points to this site having been similarly used at tor and it is not yet known where the early abbots of tor were buried the southern side of the garth which formed the wall of the locatorium and adjoining refectory with its sub-vault is now almost obscured by additions to the post dissolution mansion built in all probability by sir george carey subsequent to sixteen sixty two as in the old engraving of that date the site of the refectory was still a ruin the locatorium or calefactory the small entrance discernible in the masonry in the south-east corner of the garth led from the cloister into the canon's calefactory to reach this room we leave the cloister by the doorway in the south-east corner of the garth and passing a large circular buttress supporting the badly built addition to the house gain the entrance at the back of the east wing this entrance to the cally factory did not exist in the cannon's days a small built-up doorway in the south wall to the left on entering was probably used by the lay brother to bring in fuel for the fire the site of the fire which gave to this apartment the name of cally factory can be traced in the east wall to the right on entering in this room alone could the strict rule of silence be relaxed by which it was also known as the locatorium or room of conversation the roof was groined and there was no second story as it would have interfered with the large window generally circular in the east end of the refectory the refectory sub-vault there was no communication between the locatorium and the refectory sub-vault into which we next enter the partition walls are modern and this was originally one vault of four double bays the groined roof was supported on three beer-stone pillars with purbeck capital and base two of these pillars were built in and hidden by the cross walls one has been again exposed this vault was formerly lit by four lights one in each bay on the north side from the garth the end window has been converted into a stairway now closed which formerly communicated with the butler's room the entrance to this vault was on the south side in the second bay from the east end immediately under where the pulpit of the refectorium would be placed in the wall as at st agatha's easeby yorkshire the site of the pulpit is now occupied by the entrance to the residence windows originally occupied the first and third bays and in the fourth the appearance of the masonry suggests a lavatory recess for washing this sub vault was not improbably used as a school in which the novitiates were taught the west end wall is part of a mass of masonry twelve feet in thickness formed by an addition each side to the original partition wall to form a base for the elizabethan chimneys the cellarer's store to reach the other side of the twelve feet thick wall we must cross the garth pass the modern wings and additions which almost cover the southern half of the quadrangle and by a circuitous route through the basements once more reach the continuation of the refectory sub-vault these two bays from their position were doubtless used as the cellarers store two of the original windows although closed by masonry give a very good idea of what these sub vault windows were like the entrance now closed appears to have been again on the south side in the west bay the two doorways at present open have been since broken through there was originally no access to the refectory sub vaults from the garth the wall dividing the cellarer's store was also not part of the original plan although probably of earlier date than the similar walls in the school of the novitiates chapter v the south-west corner of the garth this corner now covered by modern staircase leading to the second storey of the house is interesting on account of the remains of the lavatories at which the canons washed before going in to meals the base of an ornamental column and a fragment of dog-tooth ornament are fortunately left in the south wall to show the site of one lavatory the other lavatory is in the west wall the arch being bisected by the modern staircase wall the more ornamental lavatory would probably be used by the canons that in the west wall by the lay brethren and novitiates the position of these lavatories gives a clue to the site of the staircase or grease as it was called which led up to the refectory this was situated in the corner between the lavatories the line of the stairway against the west wall could recently be detected

and

as at other houses of the order was probably of iron or wood although all trace is obliterated by modern structures there is little doubt that the cloister extended along the south side of the garth and protected the site of the lavatories and the main entrance beyond the wall of the guest-hall and north side adjoining the church were also proved in nineteen eleven to have been covered the this name volta is derived from an old description of the sister house of titchfield now in the library of the duke of portland at welbeck The doorway through which we now enter from the south-west corner of the garth, as already stated, was not part of the monastical plan, as this wall outside was occupied by the stairs to the refectory.

Zaxby's.

the upper storey in the days when the rites of roman catholicism were interdicted in this country was used as a secret chapel part if not all this upper chamber would be the abbot's bedroom and the small oriel window just under the eaves of the roof looking towards the church was in all probability used for the private devotions of the successive abbots of tor perhaps from this very aperture simon reed looked for the last time on the twenty fifth of april fifteen thirty nine before surrendering his church and abbey to the officials of henry the the windows were again plastered over during the repairs effected in nineteen o six but in the year nineteen o nine colonel carey had these interesting relics once more exposed and restored which manifestation of care for this historic building will be much appreciated by the thoughtful to whom such monuments of the past appeal projecting from the wall of the guest-hall under one of the modern windows of the present chapel is the back of the fireplace corbelled one foot from the face of the wall the fireplace was a characteristic feature of the guest-hall of a monastery as well as of the calefactory previous to the insertion of the window this corbelled chimney was continued to the roof instances of such twelfth-century work are now rare and it is to be regretted that a buttress has been recently built up to it underneath the outside of this fireplace was recently covered by a creeping plant the roots of which were in the floor of the undercroft inside section seven of a short description of tall abbey by hugh robert watkin the entrance to the garth was through the present subway level with the undercrofts and originally little if at all below the level of the outside ground the walls partitioning off the undercrofts from the passageway are thinner than the main walls of these west buildings which are nearly five feet thick at the ground the basement of the abbot's tower projecting from the west wing of the abbey formed the main entrance to the seclusion of the garth and cannon's quarters the walls on each side of the entrance have recessed seats where wayfarers seeking rest and shelter for the night would be interviewed by the prior or cellarer or the poor sat waiting for the remnants of the canon's repast the abbot's tower the first story is reached by a stairway adjoining the north side as the level of the road as shown by excavation was originally two and a half feet lower than at the present day and the lighting of the guest-hall and undercroft have both been altered in this corner there is little doubt that this was not the original means of access to the guest-hall and abbot's quarters from a slight thickening of the masonry on the right-hand side of the basement entrance the stairway may have been placed at this point and the doorway probably in the south side of the tower a lavatory with o g arch is in the north wall of the guests entrance this is obviously of the same date as the doorway into the hall the second story is now reached by means of the staircase leading from the first floor of the tower to the dining-room through a doorway made in the south side of the tower in the three feet thickness of the wall three high steps of local conglomerate stone have been inserted this doorway like the staircase is modern and the chamber doubtless the abbot's study as well as the third story which now contains the clock were connected by a newelled stairway in the south-east corner of the tower direct with the abbot's rooms this well-worn circular stairway bears the marks of much usage and the steps with lift of about ten inches have been repaired with slate it was originally built of conglomerate rock an unsuitable material but which attests its age as beer stone and granite were used later the stairs now only lead from the floor of the second story but the structure of the steps deviation of the line of wall below just inside the o g arched entrance into former guest hall and a recess in the wall of adjoining pantry show indubitably that these stairs connected the upper rooms of the tower with the abbot's apartments the tower underwent complete repair in eighteen seventy four when the floors were renewed and the second story panelled the new-auld stairway originally led direct on to the roof the top of the tower has been repaired with bricks and the stairway is now closed by a wooden trap-door a chimney has at one time been inserted in the east wall and a fireplace of hamhill stone put in the second story the bell on which the clock now strikes was formerly rung in a small wooden belfry on the roof by rope from the first story the hole in the ceiling through which the rope ascended can be seen just inside the ogee arched entrance the bell is thirteen and a half inches in diameter at the mouth with a depth of nine and a half inches the original eye cast in the bell by which it was suspended has been broken and it is now hung on two wrought-iron loops bolted to a rocking beam there is a legend that the bell was taken from one of the vessels of the spanish armada from its size it may have been a ship's bell but the old clapper now hanging useless has no ring or fastening for lanyard this theory is further refuted by an inscription on the bell in old english characters the lettering in the mould appears to have been misposed so that the inscription probably reads reversed as on one of the church bells at kennerley many of the old church bells in devonshire have been recast but there are some thirty-four with inscriptions in old english lettering more or less undecipherable and there is little doubt that this is one of the abbey bells the tone is thin but silvery and from the fact that this bell alone has been preserved from the dissolution of the abbey it is probable that it always hung in this tower and thus escaped the destruction of the church bells it may have summoned the canons lay brethren and guests to meals and possibly sounded the curfew the modern chapel when used as the guest hall this building contained no gallery as now and extended over the passage in the basement the o g arched entrance thus opened direct into the hall this is further proved by the position of the fireplace which would then be in the centre of the east wall the walls have been thickly covered with lath and plaster and an apse of this material surmounts the altar behind which steps in the wall lead down into the vestry the carved wooden bosses at the intersections of the ceiling ribs are probably the only portions of the room now visible which antedate its conversion to a chapel in the altar crucifix standing on a white marble representation of tomb is probably of swiss workmanship the six candlesticks are of local marble in which the embedded corals are beautifully shown the chapel contains several mural tablets the earliest erected to the memory of george carey esq who died december first eighteen o five and of cecilia his wife august thirtieth seventeen seventy nine the year the chapel was dedicated the visitor will regard with reverence and sympathetic thought the beautiful piece of marble with gilded letters and frame inscribed to the memory of lieutenant henry j l carey of the devonshire regiment dearly loved only son of colonel lucius carey of torre abbey and of bertha his first wife He died in South Africa, 2nd of January 1901, during the Boer War, in his 29th year.

Rest in Peace End of Section 7 the moan gate-house the position of this gate-house is very noticeable it stands at an angle altogether out of harmony with the rest of the monastical buildings which are all parallel and in accordance with the orientation of the church the natural inference is that this gate-house and the adjoining long building which occupied the site of foundations shown in the plan were standing before the canons came into possession of the property in eleven ninety six in the old engraving of sixteen sixty two this building is marked as the old gate-house whereas the one other of the missing two although sketched in an impossible position is called the gate-house on ye west side of ye abbey by which is doubtless meant that marked x in the plan if the artist can be relied upon the present gate-house although the oldest of the three has therefore outlasted the others recent investigation and the evidence of architectural detail show that what we have named the moen gate-house was erected between the years thirteen ten to thirteen thirty but certainly occupies the exact site of a still older gate-house which explains its position the building covers two entrances one wide enough for vehicles and a smaller footway in the first bay of the larger entrance on the centre keystone of red sandstone are the arms of torre abbey a chevron between three pastoral staves oliver tells us that these were formerly mistaken for nine nine nine in the second bay is the simple device of the founder william brewer described in heraldry as ghouls with two bends under oar which means that the bends or wavy lines were in gold on a red background on the right-hand side as we enter on the first bracket from which the vaulting rib springs is a rather indistinct design on the sinister of the shield are the original arms of the mohun family of dunster a hand habited in maunch grasping a fleur-de-lis the blank dexter probably signifies the connection of this family with that of william brewer by marriage alicia the fourth daughter of the founder of torre abbey married reginald de mohun her father's ward to whom she brought the manor of torre brewer afterwards known as torre on the second bracket is an eagle displayed this has been misinterpreted by oliver and others as the arms of the speke family which were two cross-bars and a two-headed eagle it is in reality the seal adopted by john son of richard de moyne in the reign of henry the on the first bracket of the second bay is a shield on which is a cross engrailed john de mohun the third as he was known to distinguish him from two ancestors who died in thirteen thirty at the approximate age of forty-five changed the ancient arms of the hand bearing the fleur-de-lis to a gold shield with sable cross engrailed this is the device on this bracket and was certainly not known before the year thirteen ten the succeeding john de mohun last lord mohun of dunster altered the device by cutting the engrailment through making the cross a series of diamonds or lozenges this device is not on the gate-house and would it is thought undoubtedly have found a place if the gate-house had been built subsequent to the year thirteen thirty the canon's masons seem to have run short of heraldic designs as on the fourth and last bracket they have repeated the three pastoral staves of the abbey arms on the left side of this entrance is only one attempt at decoration on the end bracket a large trefoil the significance of which is not known the keystones in the smaller passage are incised with two circles or wheels of eight spokes the interstices have in the first bay two dagger-like forms three triangles and three blank spaces in the second bay there are two of each incised form and four blank spaces the interpretation of these cabalistic signs is not known they probably had some signification the porter's lodge on the south side occupied the space not appropriated by the entrances on the ground floor of the gate-house this chamber only seventeen feet by nine feet is lit by two small windows looking east and west through the four feet thick walls a cresset bracket of stone in the wall has the appearance of having been carved a newled staircase of granite in the south-east tower leads to the upper stories and the roof on the first floor the room owing to the height of the carriage-way only extends half the width of the building and measures sixteen feet nine inches by fifteen feet in the south wall there is a fireplace a small stone bracket held the cresset a recess in the north wall formed a cupboard about five feet from the ground in the south-west corner a narrow low doorway led into the turret where a larger doorway now filled with masonry formerly opened into the upper story of the long building adjoining the second floor which extends over the carriageway forms a much larger room fireplace which had been plastered over once occupied the centre of the north wall a small recess in the south wall four and a half feet from the entrance and four feet four inches from the floor appears to be all the cupboard accommodation the room contained with the possible use of both north-west and south-west corner towers into which small doorways lead on the removal of the ceiling of this room in nineteen o six some remains of the stucco decoration were revealed above the level of the lath and plaster which shows this chamber to have been of some importance not improbably it was the prior's parlour the prior who was known previous to the year twelve ninety four as decanus or dean kept the keys of the entrances at night and was more directly in charge of the canons and lay brethren than the abbot whose duties frequently necessitated his absence to attend general chapters and other gatherings of the chief dignitaries of the land in the north-east corner of this upper room when the wall was broken through a narrow passage led to the second floor of the main building descending some seven feet by means of a steep staircase this awkward connection between the buildings and the fact that the west wall of the kitchen premises has been carried at least six feet out of true parallel in order to meet this northeast corner of the gate-house show that this building antedates the wing and that in the original plan of the abbey there was no intention of connecting the gate-house with the main building the design occupies a small place in the boa arms of torquay and is unique among the remaining abbey gateways in this country the fordon the material of the adjoining long building has been removed for use elsewhere and there is scarcely any rubble in the soil covering the foundations which lie some two feet under the ground from the dimensions of this building convenience for drainage proximity to the barn for fodder and the necessity for large accommodation for the horses of visitors with their numerous retinue it is conjectured that the lower storey was the forden or fold for stabling the floor above would be occupied by the lay brethren who did the menial work of the abbey and looked after the numerous live-stock an inventory of titchfield abbey made in the year fourteen twenty mentions forty-eight horses and gives the total number of the quadrupeds owned by the abbey as one thousand four hundred and forty section nine of a short description of torre abbey by hugh robert watkin the east wall of the cemetery terminates at its south end against but is not built into the north wall of a ruined building the significance of this fact is that the building was there before the wall was erected the enclosure of the cemetery as we learn from the records of dryburgh abbey was one of the first duties of the canons from the material and nature of the cemetery wall of torre abbey there is no reason to doubt that it dates from the foundation of the abbey the adjoining building is therefore older than the abbey the position of this east orla or hall as proved by recent investigation and shown in the plan was altogether out of alignment with the walls of the adjoining muniment room and rest of the abbey but was parallel with the series of buildings on the west side which we have just considered the very ancient-looking cross walls with round archways only descend some six inches under the surface and are comparatively modern only the north wall and the north end of the east wall of the old building remain above ground a cornice or inside string course of stone suggests that the room was fourteen feet high the north wall contained a window seven feet wide the sill of which must have been ten feet above the level of the floor excavation to a depth of six feet showed that a quantity of boulders had been laid in the ground and the north wall although three feet three inches thick was strengthened inside as well as out by additional buttresses two feet thick thus forming masonry over seven feet in thickness to carry a wall fourteen feet high these precautions were explained by the nature of the subsoil which though now quite dry was doubtless once saturated with water the site has now for centuries been drained by a well which adjoins this building the well is thirteen feet deep from the ledge and contained when measured during the exceptional drought of the autumn nineteen o six water to the depth of six and a half feet this level was just below that of the floor of the aura in august nineteen o nine some seven feet of water were pumped out of the well and the clay bed examined the water enters the well at the lowest point from the north side in three small streams excavation outside the well to the north of the buttress revealed a drain just below the level of the orla floor which formerly carried the overflow from the well the masonry now rises nine feet above this level this and the fact that the old drain has now no connection with the well shows the masonry of the well which is uniform to have been entirely reconstructed probably when the ruins were first converted into a private residence subsequent to sixteen sixty two in the masonry of the east wall can be traced a window now filled in measuring four feet three inches inside with an outside width of three feet the height inside was ten feet the sill four feet from the ground the jam of another window is shown in the end of the existing piece of wall a third window probably occupied a corresponding position further down the wall there was no doorway in either the east side or the north wall the gap has been broken through but on the west side it was possible to trace a splayed doorway which has been filled in with masonry of probably the same date as the addition to this building on the south side a projecting ledge of masonry one foot in width and the same distance from the ground as in the abbey church doubtless formed the foundation for a seat on each side of the hall returning to the south end of this building almost on the site where a small arbour of iron trellis work now stands was a tower in the end of the orla this tower had fallen or been demolished before the wing was added as that part of the tower represented by the dotted lines was removed to make room for the new building the floor of this wing was found to be four feet ten inches below the present surface and at a depth of six feet four inches or eighteen inches below that floor a well-worn pebbled roadway four and a half feet wide was discovered which originally led through the basement of the tower into the orla beyond a rough stairway from the floor of the wing over the demolished east side of the tower covered a still older ruined staircase which originally led from the pebbled roadway into the turret in the wall the blackened condition of the masonry of this turret and the discovery of the ash-pit of a stove on the other side of the pebbled way showed that the remains of the tower had been used as a chimney much of the material which covers the original floor level to a depth of six feet four inches and on which we now stand consists of the fallen debris of this wing which probably fell soon after the dissolution of the abbey for what purpose it was used the presence of the stove would perhaps suggest distillery or brewery the older main building with end tower termed throughout the aura has in many features the proportions of a church and were it not that the position is n n w by s s e it might well be the original church of the holy saviour on the site of which the founder william brewer stipulated that the abbey was to be built the presence of the associated buildings on the west inclines us to the opinion that this building on the east adjoining a fresh water supply was a norman orla protected on the west by gate-house and moat on the south and south-east by impassable swamps and on the north by a wall a remnant of which stands by the present entrance to the grounds and that the abbey church was in reality built on the site of a former sacred edifice perhaps as many of the saxon churches were of wattle and mud dugdale with what authority is not known mentions the probability that william brewer was born at tor if there is any truth in this statement this norman orla was the family home and birthplace of the founder of tor abbey the infirmary of this building nothing remains above ground the mulberry tree nearly six feet in circumference now growing over the foundation of the east wall of the infirmary was planted in eighteen twenty six the foundations running north-south behind the infirmary are of late date and these walls were badly constructed of material taken from an older building the barn the so-called spanish barn undoubtedly dates from the earliest days of the abbey transepts to north and south formed a way through which the largest wagon could be drawn to be unloaded within the barn the walls three feet thick are strengthened on each side by ten buttresses three similar supports being built to each end the inside measurements of this spacious garner are one hundred and nineteen feet long by twenty eight feet wide about two-thirds of the length of the barn from the east end has been floored over to form a second storey and cover the stabling and coach-house beneath originally the garner was open from floor to roof the timber framework of the roof is apparently only the second the barn has had in the seven hundred years of its existence originally there were twelve ribs as shown by the recesses for the beam rests in the wall and the corresponding number of buttresses outside the slated roof is now carried by seventeen ribs of what is reputed to be spanish chestnut the wood is exceedingly hard and the whole roof is fastened together by wooden pins the beams in the roof of westminster abbey were long thought to be of chestnut but were proved by dr lindley to be of dermast oak a solid block darkened with age fills the space of the original beam rest in the north-east corner this is more like oak and may be the only piece of the first roof left the name spanish barn is undoubtedly derived from the fact that three hundred and ninety seven prisoners from the galleon capitana commanded by don pedro de valdes captured from the spanish armada and brought into torbay on the twenty sixth of july fifteen eighty eight were incarcerated in this building while the vessel was being dismantled from the account in white's history of torquay the prisoners appear to have been kept here for two or three weeks when they were separated five of the principal prisoners were sent to the lord lieutenant who committed them to the town prison of exeter one hundred and sixty six probably the more dangerous were put back on board and taken with the capitana on the twenty eighth of august to dartmouth where they were employed on sir john gilbert's estate at greenway two hundred and twenty six including the boys and sixty one sailors were put in the bride well in a subsequent letter dated fourteenth of october termed our house of correction near the city of exeter as the number is then mentioned as two hundred and eleven it is presumed that fifteen had succumbed from these figures it will be seen that certainly on this occasion no massacre or death from starvation in the barn as has been surmised took place there is no recent record of human bones having been found in the immediate neighbourhood of the barn to justify belief in the massacre the tradition concerning which is recorded in a letter written by a visitor to the abbey about the year seventeen seventy eight and mentioned by white a round shot found in trenching north of the barn is now among the relics in the museum of the torquay natural history society the arms of tor abbey carved on a square stone formerly surmounted the gabled transept on the north side encaustic tiles these fragments of the chancel floor are the only pieces with armorial designs found during the original excavations three pieces show well the six fleurs-de-lis of by-lee abbey essex founded sixteen years before tor what is more remarkable three chevrons the arms of the abbey of tongeloo in belgium one of the earliest foundations of the order in eleven twenty eight and still flourishing are clearly to be traced on a similar shield in two other places the pastoral staff pattern is rather an ornamental device than an attempt to depict the arms of torre abbey it is thought that many such fragments must have been found during the investigations of the rev mchenry mentioned by blewitt all account of which is unfortunately lost the pieces here illustrated are through the kindness of colonel carey in the care of the torquay natural history society end of section nine End of A Short Description of Tor Abbey Torquay, Devonshire By Hugh Robert Watkin

The stone of the arch is thought to be from Solcombe.

the garth the general proportions of this centre of the monastical life were dependent upon the dimensions of the church and in the case of torre abbey measured ninety-one feet square the garth was a grass plot or paved quadrangle in the centre of which was sometimes a fountain or tree symbolical of life in this case there does not appear to have been anything in the centre and the square was probably grassed to the north was the church wall with exception of a small door for processional purposes in the north-west corner and a second entrance discovered in nineteen eleven used by the canons to reach the stalls after much search a small portion of the foundation of the north cloister wall was found thirteen feet south of this entrance showing that the north cloister which would contain the carols was four feet wider than the other sides on the west was the wall of the guest-hall which in those days would have no windows overlooking the garth the cloister in the north-east corner of the garth is a doorway built in the wall of the south transept at this point five feet thick to withstand the thrust and weight of the church tower this door was the canon's entrance to the church and also was probably the only means of access to the dormitory by the stairway in the south transept the outside arching of the doorway is smaller than the inside the south side of the entrance is at right angles with the line of the wall but the north side splays inwards this with the enlarged inner arch was probably to allow the circular headed door to open inwards in the thickness of the wall the lines cut on the slate slab fixed in the wall are by the rev joseph reeve at one time vicar of chudleigh the exact shape of the stairway from the lower level of the garth was difficult to determine there were at least two steps up to this door the tiled floor of the cloister on the east side was one foot above the level of the garth from which it was separated by a stone foundation the remains of this wall are at one level with no trace of columns probably an upper tier of beer stone which has been removed carried the support to the roof a recess in the masonry formed by a strengthening of the west wall of the transept was probably used as the columna with gradi or shelves on which the manuscript books of the abbey were kept the adjoining gap in the wall can never have been an entrance two fragments of the tiled floor in situ showed that the arch is too low for such a purpose the discovery of the drain already mentioned coming from the transept and passing under the pier which has been since placed in the centre to support the wall suggested that this was a lavatory but subsequent consideration favours the probability that it was rather an ombree to contain books beyond the entrance to the chapter-house already noticed is the arched exit from the day-stairs descending from the daughter to the garth this has been closed with masonry since the dissolution and all trace of the stairway has been removed the exit in the corner probably led into a sleip which in turn communicated with the rear daughter the drain from which and old foundations of the east wing were discovered in nineteen eleven and inserted in the revised plan at titchfield abbey the nearest religious house of the same order to tor this cloister on the east side of the garth was the place of interment for the abbots the first abbot of titchfield was buried in front of the chapter-house entrance and the others in succession southward nothing we have noticed points to this site having been similarly used at tor and it is not yet known where the early abbots of tor were buried the southern side of the garth which formed the wall of the locatorium and adjoining refectory with its sub-vault is now almost obscured by additions to the post dissolution mansion built in all probability by sir george carey subsequent to sixteen sixty two as in the old engraving of that date the site of the refectory was still a ruin the locatorium or calefactory the small entrance discernible in the masonry in the south-east corner of the garth led from the cloister into the canon's calefactory to reach this room we leave the cloister by the doorway in the south-east corner of the garth and passing a large circular buttress supporting the badly built addition to the house gain the entrance at the back of the east wing this entrance to the cally factory did not exist in the cannon's days a small built-up doorway in the south wall to the left on entering was probably used by the lay brother to bring in fuel for the fire the site of the fire which gave to this apartment the name of cally factory can be traced in the east wall to the right on entering in this room alone could the strict rule of silence be relaxed by which it was also known as the locatorium or room of conversation the roof was groined and there was no second story as it would have interfered with the large window generally circular in the east end of the refectory the refectory sub-vault there was no communication between the locatorium and the refectory sub-vault into which we next enter the partition walls are modern and this was originally one vault of four double bays the groined roof was supported on three beer-stone pillars with purbeck capital and base two of these pillars were built in and hidden by the cross walls one has been again exposed this vault was formerly lit by four lights one in each bay on the north side from the garth the end window has been converted into a stairway now closed which formerly communicated with the butler's room the entrance to this vault was on the south side in the second bay from the east end immediately under where the pulpit of the refectorium would be placed in the wall as at st agatha's easeby yorkshire the site of the pulpit is now occupied by the entrance to the residence windows originally occupied the first and third bays and in the fourth the appearance of the masonry suggests a lavatory recess for washing this sub vault was not improbably used as a school in which the novitiates were taught the west end wall is part of a mass of masonry twelve feet in thickness formed by an addition each side to the original partition wall to form a base for the elizabethan chimneys the cellarer's store to reach the other side of the twelve feet thick wall we must cross the garth pass the modern wings and additions which almost cover the southern half of the quadrangle and by a circuitous route through the basements once more reach the continuation of the refectory sub-vault these two bays from their position were doubtless used as the cellarers store two of the original windows although closed by masonry give a very good idea of what these sub vault windows were like the entrance now closed appears to have been again on the south side in the west bay the two doorways at present open have been since broken through there was originally no access to the refectory sub vaults from the garth the wall dividing the cellarer's store was also not part of the original plan although probably of earlier date than the similar walls in the school of the novitiates chapter v the south-west corner of the garth this corner now covered by modern staircase leading to the second storey of the house is interesting on account of the remains of the lavatories at which the canons washed before going in to meals the base of an ornamental column and a fragment of dog-tooth ornament are fortunately left in the south wall to show the site of one lavatory the other lavatory is in the west wall the arch being bisected by the modern staircase wall the more ornamental lavatory would probably be used by the canons that in the west wall by the lay brethren and novitiates the position of these lavatories gives a clue to the site of the staircase or grease as it was called which led up to the refectory this was situated in the corner between the lavatories the line of the stairway against the west wall could recently be detected

and

as at other houses of the order was probably of iron or wood although all trace is obliterated by modern structures there is little doubt that the cloister extended along the south side of the garth and protected the site of the lavatories and the main entrance beyond the wall of the guest-hall and north side adjoining the church were also proved in nineteen eleven to have been covered the this name volta is derived from an old description of the sister house of titchfield now in the library of the duke of portland at welbeck the doorway through which we now enter from the south-west corner of the garth as already stated was not part of the monastical plan as this wall outside was occupied by the stairs to the refectory the original means of exit at this end can be traced in the south wall of the volta on our left and led if not into the kitchen premises into an adjoining the volta was a sub-vault under the abbot's apartments and consisted of three double bays the groined roof is supported on two central columns of beer stone with roughly moulded purbeck capital and base as in the school of the novitiates the volta was used for the accommodation of the retinue and attendants brought by the more important guests and for the more humble visitors who enjoyed the abbey's hospitality refused to none for the regulation night and day after which period the traveller was expected to pay for his entertainment this hall was lighted by one window in the east wall and three in the west wall the window nearest to the abbot's tower with rounded head and dripstone course has fortunately been preserved in its original form in the south-west corner of the volta a narrow way through the wall leads to a newel stairway which has only recently been uncovered and was doubtless the means of communication between the abbot's apartments and the kitchen premises this stairway did not form part of the original monastical plan and was probably added by one of the later abbots the north-east corner is filled by a clumsily constructed buttress for which no cause is apparent and the object of which cannot be conjectured unless it was at one time intended to put a fireplace in the corner above it the recess and hole through the east wall were for the water pipes which supplied the lavatory on the outside sub-vault of guest hall the roof of this undercroft is supported in the centre by two massive piers of purbeck portland stone which from their exceptional hardness probably came from the disused quarry at tilliwim abandoned it is thought on this account the one pier is roughly rectangular the other has been trimmed to an octagon from the fact that these piers differ from those in the other vaults it has been suggested that they may have been taken from a still older building this undercroft was probably in the abbey days never anything but a store although some underground sand-filled flues in which was found charcoal in the northwest end bay point to a stove or oven for baking purposes having once occupied this spot the position and shape of the southernmost of the three windows in the west wall has been somewhat altered by the subsequent erection of the entrance stairway to the abbot's tower provision was made for two doorways into this undercroft one at the south end of each series of bays only the one nearest the garth is now open the threshold of this doorway appears to be an attempt at if not actually the head-end stone of a coffin of the same local red sandstone as the one in the south transept west side of garth when the old plaster was recently removed from the outside of the wall above the elevated covered passage built for communication from the house to the chapel two stone window-frames in the masonry were uncovered the floor levels of this building have been altered to accommodate a lofty dining-room which occupies what were two stories and formed the abbot's apartments the upper storey in the days when the rites of roman catholicism were interdicted in this country was used as a secret chapel part if not all this upper chamber would be the abbot's bedroom and the small oriel window just under the eaves of the roof looking towards the church was in all probability used for the private devotions of the successive abbots of tor perhaps from this very aperture simon reed looked for the last time on the twenty fifth of april fifteen thirty nine before surrendering his church and abbey to the officials of henry the the windows were again plastered over during the repairs effected in nineteen o six but in the year nineteen o nine colonel carey had these interesting relics once more exposed and restored which manifestation of care for this historic building will be much appreciated by the thoughtful to whom such monuments of the past appeal projecting from the wall of the guest-hall under one of the modern windows of the present chapel is the back of the fireplace corbelled one foot from the face of the wall the fireplace was a characteristic feature of the guest-hall of a monastery as well as of the calefactory previous to the insertion of the window this corbelled chimney was continued to the roof instances of such twelfth-century work are now rare and it is to be regretted that a buttress has been recently built up to it underneath the outside of this fireplace was recently covered by a creeping plant the roots of which were in the floor of the undercroft inside section seven of a short description of tall abbey by hugh robert watkin the entrance to the garth was through the present subway level with the undercrofts and originally little if at all below the level of the outside ground the walls partitioning off the undercrofts from the passageway are thinner than the main walls of these west buildings which are nearly five feet thick at the ground the basement of the abbot's tower projecting from the west wing of the abbey formed the main entrance to the seclusion of the garth and cannon's quarters the walls on each side of the entrance have recessed seats where wayfarers seeking rest and shelter for the night would be interviewed by the prior or cellarer or the poor sat waiting for the remnants of the canon's repast the abbot's tower the first story is reached by a stairway adjoining the north side as the level of the road as shown by excavation was originally two and a half feet lower than at the present day and the lighting of the guest-hall and undercroft have both been altered in this corner there is little doubt that this was not the original means of access to the guest-hall and abbot's quarters from a slight thickening of the masonry on the right-hand side of the basement entrance the stairway may have been placed at this point and the doorway probably in the south side of the tower a lavatory with o g arch is in the north wall of the guests entrance this is obviously of the same date as the doorway into the hall the second story is now reached by means of the staircase leading from the first floor of the tower to the dining-room through a doorway made in the south side of the tower in the three feet thickness of the wall three high steps of local conglomerate stone have been inserted this doorway like the staircase is modern and the chamber doubtless the abbot's study as well as the third story which now contains the clock were connected by a newelled stairway in the south-east corner of the tower direct with the abbot's rooms this well-worn circular stairway bears the marks of much usage and the steps with lift of about ten inches have been repaired with slate it was originally built of conglomerate rock an unsuitable material but which attests its age as beer stone and granite were used later the stairs now only lead from the floor of the second story but the structure of the steps deviation of the line of wall below just inside the o g arched entrance into former guest hall and a recess in the wall of adjoining pantry show indubitably that these stairs connected the upper rooms of the tower with the abbot's apartments the tower underwent complete repair in eighteen seventy four when the floors were renewed and the second story panelled the new old stairway originally led direct on to the roof the top of the tower has been repaired with bricks and the stairway is now closed by a wooden trap-door a chimney has at one time been inserted in the east wall and a fireplace of ham hill stone put in the second story the bell on which the clock now strikes was formerly rung in a small wooden belfry on the roof by rope from the first story the hole in the ceiling through which the rope ascended can be seen just inside the ogee arched entrance the bell is thirteen and a half inches in diameter at the mouth with a depth of nine and a half inches the original eye cast in the bell by which it was suspended has been broken and it is now hung on two wrought-iron loops bolted to a rocking beam there is a legend that the bell was taken from one of the vessels of the spanish armada from its size it may have been a ship's bell but the old clapper now hanging useless has no ring or fastening for lanyard this theory is further refuted by an inscription on the bell in old english characters the lettering in the mould appears to have been misposed so that the inscription probably reads reversed as on one of the church bells at kennerley many of the old church bells in devonshire have been recast but there are some thirty-four with inscriptions in old english lettering more or less undecipherable and there is little doubt that this is one of the abbey bells the tone is thin but silvery and from the fact that this bell alone has been preserved from the dissolution of the abbey it is probable that it always hung in this tower and thus escaped the destruction of the church bells it may have summoned the canons lay brethren and guests to meals and possibly sounded the curfew the modern chapel when used as the guest hall this building contained no gallery as now and extended over the passage in the basement the o g arched entrance thus opened direct into the hall this is further proved by the position of the fireplace which would then be in the centre of the east wall the walls have been thickly covered with lath and plaster and an apse of this material surmounts the altar behind which steps in the wall lead down into the vestry the carved wooden bosses at the intersections of the ceiling ribs are probably the only portions of the room now visible which antedate its conversion to a chapel in the altar crucifix standing on a white marble representation of tomb is probably of swiss workmanship the six candlesticks are of local marble in which the embedded corals are beautifully shown the chapel contains several mural tablets the earliest erected to the memory of george carey esq who died december first eighteen o five and of cecilia his wife august thirtieth seventeen seventy nine the year the chapel was dedicated the visitor will regard with reverence and sympathetic thought the beautiful piece of marble with gilded letters and frame inscribed to the memory of lieutenant henry j l carey of the devonshire regiment dearly loved only son of colonel lucius carey of torre abbey and of bertha his first wife He died in South Africa, 2nd of January 1901, during the Boer War, in his 29th year.

The blank Dexter probably signifies the connection of this family with that of William Brewer by marriage.

Alicia, the fourth daughter of the founder of Torr Abbey, married Reginald de Moen, her father's ward, to whom she brought the manner of Torr Brewer, afterwards known as Torr Moen.

on the second bracket is an eagle displayed this has been misinterpreted by oliver and others as the arms of the speke family which were two cross-bars and a two-headed eagle it is in reality the seal adopted by john son of richard de moyne in the reign of henry the on the first bracket of the second bay is a shield on which is a cross engrailed john de mohun the third as he was known to distinguish him from two ancestors who died in thirteen thirty at the approximate age of forty-five changed the ancient arms of the hand bearing the fleur-de-lis to a gold shield with sable cross engrailed this is the device on this bracket and was certainly not known before the year thirteen ten the succeeding john de mohun last lord mohun of dunster altered the device by cutting the engrailment through making the cross a series of diamonds or lozenges this device is not on the gate-house and would it is thought undoubtedly have found a place if the gate-house had been built subsequent to the year thirteen thirty the canon's masons seem to have run short of heraldic designs as on the fourth and last bracket they have repeated the three pastoral staves of the abbey arms on the left side of this entrance is only one attempt at decoration on the end bracket a large trefoil the significance of which is not known the keystones in the smaller passage are incised with two circles or wheels of eight spokes the interstices have in the first bay two dagger-like forms three triangles and three blank spaces in the second bay there are two of each incised form and four blank spaces the interpretation of these cabalistic signs is not known they probably had some signification the porter's lodge on the south side occupied the space not appropriated by the entrances on the ground floor of the gate-house this chamber only seventeen feet by nine feet is lit by two small windows looking east and west through the four feet thick walls a cresset bracket of stone in the wall has the appearance of having been carved a newled staircase of granite in the south-east tower leads to the upper stories and the roof on the first floor the room owing to the height of the carriageway only extends half the width of the building and measures sixteen feet nine inches by fifteen feet in the south wall there is a fireplace a small stone bracket held the cresset a recess in the north wall formed a cupboard about five feet from the ground in the south-west corner a narrow low doorway led into the turret where a larger doorway now filled with masonry formerly opened into the upper story of the long building adjoining the second floor which extends over the carriageway forms a much larger room fireplace which had been plastered over once occupied the centre of the north wall a small recess in the south wall four and a half feet from the entrance and four feet four inches from the floor appears to be all the cupboard accommodation the room contained with the possible use of both north-west and south-west corner towers into which small doorways lead on the removal of the ceiling of this room in nineteen o six some remains of the stucco decoration were revealed above the level of the lath and plaster which shows this chamber to have been of some importance not improbably it was the prior's parlour the prior who was known previous to the year twelve ninety four as decanus or dean kept the keys of the entrances at night and was more directly in charge of the canons and lay brethren than the abbot whose duties frequently necessitated his absence to attend general chapters and other gatherings of the chief dignitaries of the land in the north-east corner of this upper room when the wall was broken through a narrow passage led to the second floor of the main building descending some seven feet by means of a steep staircase this awkward connection between the buildings and the fact that the west wall of the kitchen premises has been carried at least six feet out of true parallel in order to meet this northeast corner of the gate-house show that this building antedates the wing and that in the original plan of the abbey there was no intention of connecting the gate-house with the main building the design occupies a small place in the boa arms of torquay and is unique among the remaining abbey gateways in this country the fordon the material of the adjoining long building has been removed for use elsewhere and there is scarcely any rubble in the soil covering the foundations which lie some two feet under the ground from the dimensions of this building convenience for drainage proximity to the barn for fodder and the necessity for large accommodation for the horses of visitors with their numerous retinue it is conjectured that the lower storey was the forden or fold for stabling the floor above would be occupied by the lay brethren who did the menial work of the abbey and looked after the numerous live-stock an inventory of titchfield abbey made in the year fourteen twenty mentions forty-eight horses and gives the total number of the quadrupeds owned by the abbey as one thousand four hundred and forty end of section eight section nine of a short description of torre abbey by hugh robert watkin this librevox recording is in the public domain the norman orla the east wall of the cemetery terminates at its south end against but is not built into the north wall of a ruined building the significance of this fact is that the building was there before the wall was erected the enclosure of the cemetery as we learn from the records of dryburgh abbey was one of the first duties of the canons from the material and nature of the cemetery wall of torre abbey there is no reason to doubt that it dates from the foundation of the abbey the adjoining building is therefore older than the abbey the position of this east orla or hall as proved by recent investigation and shown in the plan was altogether out of alignment with the walls of the adjoining muniment room and rest of the abbey but was parallel with the series of buildings on the west side which we have just considered the very ancient-looking cross walls with round archways only descend some six inches under the surface and are comparatively modern only the north wall and the north end of the east wall of the old building remain above ground a cornice or inside string course of stone suggests that the room was fourteen feet high the north wall contained a window seven feet wide the sill of which must have been ten feet above the level of the floor excavation to a depth of six feet showed that a quantity of boulders had been laid in the ground and the north wall although three feet three inches thick was strengthened inside as well as out by additional buttresses two feet thick thus forming masonry over seven feet in thickness to carry a wall fourteen feet high these precautions were explained by the nature of the subsoil which though now quite dry was doubtless once saturated with water the site has now for centuries been drained by a well which adjoins this building the well is thirteen feet deep from the ledge and contained when measured during the exceptional drought of the autumn nineteen o six water to the depth of six and a half feet this level was just below that of the floor of the aura in august nineteen o nine some seven feet of water were pumped out of the well and the clay bed examined the water enters the well at the lowest point from the north side in three small streams excavation outside the well to the north of the buttress revealed a drain just below the level of the orla floor which formerly carried the overflow from the well the masonry now rises nine feet above this level this and the fact that the old drain has now no connection with the well shows the masonry of the well which is uniform to have been entirely reconstructed probably when the ruins were first converted into a private residence subsequent to sixteen sixty two in the masonry of the east wall can be traced a window now filled in measuring four feet three inches inside with an outside width of three feet the height inside was ten feet the sill four feet from the ground the jam of another window is shown in the end of the existing piece of wall a third window probably occupied a corresponding position further down the wall there was no doorway in either the east side or the north wall the gap has been broken through but on the west side it was possible to trace a splayed doorway which has been filled in with masonry of probably the same date as the addition to this building on the south side a projecting ledge of masonry one foot in width and the same distance from the ground as in the abbey church doubtless formed the foundation for a seat on each side of the hall returning to the south end of this building almost on the site where a small arbour of iron trellis work now stands was a tower in the end of the orla this tower had fallen or been demolished before the wing was added as that part of the tower represented by the dotted lines was removed to make room for the new building the floor of this wing was found to be four feet ten inches below the present surface and at a depth of six feet four inches or eighteen inches below that floor a well-worn pebbled roadway four and a half feet wide was discovered which originally led through the basement of the tower into the orla beyond a rough stairway from the floor of the wing over the demolished east side of the tower covered a still older ruined staircase which originally led from the pebbled roadway into the turret in the wall the blackened condition of the masonry of this turret and the discovery of the ash-pit of a stove on the other side of the pebbled way showed that the remains of the tower had been used as a chimney much of the material which covers the original floor level to a depth of six feet four inches and on which we now stand consists of the fallen dbris of this wing which probably fell soon after the dissolution of the abbey for what purpose it was used the presence of the stove would perhaps suggest distillery or brewery the older main building with end tower termed throughout the aura has in many features the proportions of a church and were it not that the position is n n w by s s e it might well be the original church of the holy saviour on the site of which the founder william brewer stipulated that the abbey was to be built the presence of the associated buildings on the west inclines us to the opinion that this building on the east adjoining a fresh water supply was a norman orla protected on the west by gate-house and moat on the south and south-east by impassable swamps and on the north by a wall a remnant of which stands by the present entrance to the grounds and that the abbey church was in reality built on the site of a former sacred edifice perhaps as many of the saxon churches were of wattle and mud dugdale with what authority is not known mentions the probability that william brewer was born at tor if there is any truth in this statement this norman orla was the family home and birthplace of the founder of tor abbey the infirmary of this building nothing remains above ground the mulberry tree nearly six feet in circumference now growing over the foundation of the east wall of the infirmary was planted in eighteen twenty six the foundations running north-south behind the infirmary are of late date and these walls were badly constructed of material taken from an older building the barn the so-called spanish barn undoubtedly dates from the earliest days of the abbey transepts to north and south formed a way through which the largest wagon could be drawn to be unloaded within the barn the walls three feet thick are strengthened on each side by ten buttresses three similar supports being built to each end the inside measurements of this spacious garner are one hundred and nineteen feet long by twenty eight feet wide about two-thirds of the length of the barn from the east end has been floored over to form a second storey and cover the stabling and coach-house beneath originally the garner was open from floor to roof the timber framework of the roof is apparently only the second the barn has had in the seven hundred years of its existence originally there were twelve ribs as shown by the recesses for the beam rests in the wall and the corresponding number of buttresses outside the slated roof is now carried by seventeen ribs of what is reputed to be spanish chestnut the wood is exceedingly hard and the whole roof is fastened together by wooden pins the beams in the roof of westminster abbey were long thought to be of chestnut but were proved by dr lindley to be of dermast oak a solid block darkened with age fills the space of the original beam rest in the north-east corner this is more like oak and may be the only piece of the first roof left the name spanish barn is undoubtedly derived from the fact that three hundred and ninety seven prisoners from the galleon capitana commanded by don pedro de valdes captured from the spanish armada and brought into torbay on the twenty sixth of july fifteen eighty eight were incarcerated in this building while the vessel was being dismantled from the account in white's history of torquay the prisoners appear to have been kept here for two or three weeks when they were separated five of the principal prisoners were sent to the lord lieutenant who committed them to the town prison of exeter one hundred and sixty six probably the more dangerous were put back on board and taken with the capitana on the twenty eighth of august to dartmouth where they were employed on sir john gilbert's estate at greenway two hundred and twenty six including the boys and sixty one sailors were put in the bride well in a subsequent letter dated fourteenth of october termed our house of correction near the city of exeter as the number is then mentioned as two hundred and eleven it is presumed that fifteen had succumbed from these figures it will be seen that certainly on this occasion no massacre or death from starvation in the barn as has been surmised took place there is no recent record of human bones having been found in the immediate neighbourhood of the barn to justify belief in the massacre the tradition concerning which is recorded in a letter written by a visitor to the abbey about the year seventeen seventy eight and mentioned by white a round shot found in trenching north of the barn is now among the relics in the museum of the torquay natural history society the arms of tor abbey carved on a square stone formerly surmounted the gabled transept on the north side encaustic tiles these fragments of the chancel floor are the only pieces with armorial designs found during the original excavations three pieces show well the six fleurs-de-lis of by-lee abbey essex founded sixteen years before tor what is more remarkable three chevrons the arms of the abbey of tongeloo in belgium one of the earliest foundations of the order in eleven twenty eight and still flourishing are clearly to be traced on a similar shield in two other places the pastoral staff pattern is rather an ornamental device than an attempt to depict the arms of torre abbey it is thought that many such fragments must have been found during the investigations of the reverend mchenry mentioned by blewitt all account of which is unfortunately lost the pieces here illustrated are through the kindness of colonel carey in the care of the torquay natural history society end of section nine End of A Short Description of Tor Abbey Torquay, Devonshire By Hugh Robert Watkin

The exit in the corner probably led into a slipe, which in turn communicated with the rear daughter, the drain from which and old foundations of the east wing were discovered in 1911 and inserted in the revised plan.

At Titchfield Abbey, the nearest religious house of the same order to Tor, this cloister on the east side of the Garth was the place of interment for the abbots.

The first abbot of Titchfield was buried in front of the chapter house entrance and the others in succession southward.

Nothing we have noticed points to this site having been similarly used at Tor and it is not yet known where the early abbots of Tor were buried.

From the dimensions of this building, convenience for drainage, proximity to the barn for fodder and the necessity for large accommodation for the horses of visitors with their numerous retinue, it is conjectured that the lower storey was the forden or fold for stabling.

The floor above would be occupied by the lay brethren who did the menial work of the abbey and looked after the numerous livestock.

An inventory of Titchfield Abbey made in the year 1420 mentions 48 horses and gives the total number of the quadrupeds owned by the abbey as 1,440.

End of section 8 Section nine of A Short Description of Tor Abbey by Hugh Robert Watkin.