Finchale Priory
Religious Place In Framwellgate Moor, County Durham
Finchale Priory was a benedictine priory founded in 1196 on the site of the hermitage of Saint Godric.
Finchale Priory was founded in 1196 on the banks of the River Wear. It was an outpost of Durham Cathedral and was a holiday retreat for the monks of Durham until it's dissolution in 1538.
The priory came under attack in 1942 by the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) and 2 bombs were dropped on the site. It is thought the Luftwaffe had set out to bomb nearby Durham Cathedral as part of the raids in the North East of England. However, as they approached the cathedral on 1st May 1942, a dense mist came over the city and the bombs mistakenly hit Finchale Priory, saving the cathedral. Some people believed that the spirit of St Cuthbert was behind the camoflaging of the cathedral.
The site is now managed by the English Heritage and is free to look around, though there is a small charge for parking. It is quite a small place, but you can continue your visit by heading over the footbridge and walking through Cocken Wood.
Main image courtesy of Phil Page.
Get 3 points if you have visited this place. Already visited by 145 VIPs.
Login to the VIP area to add places to your bucket list, mark them as visited and more importantly see where you rank on the league table.
How To Find Finchale Priory
Where To Park For Finchale Priory?
Lat / Long
54.81847, 54.81847
What three words
There is a charged car park for the priory on site, not managed by English Heritage.
Contributed by Sandra Clemens
I love the great outdoors and have been a National Trust & English Heritage member for years. I also love going off the beaten track and finding places like Sharp's Folly or Rothley Castle which are hidden gems in Northumberland. My favourite recent hike was climbing Red Screes in the Lake District on a whim, not fully grasping how high 776m was. It was still an achievement to conquer a Wainwright walk and I hope to do more one day.
More Places from Sandra
More Places In Framwellgate Moor
Find more fabulous places in Framwellgate Moor, County Durham and if you know of a place we haven't listed, then let us know.
Oh no! We couldn't find any more places for this area. Don't worry, we're adding new places all the time, so please check back again soon.
More Religious Places
So this religious place wasn't enough and you want more? Don't worry we have you covered.
St Michael and All Angels Church
Religious Place Ford And Etal NorthumberlandA 13th century church located in the grounds of Ford Castle, later restored by John Dobson.
St Mary's Chantry House
Religious Place Alnwick NorthumberlandA rare and significant medieval ruin, which served as the first school in Alnwick.
Never Miss A Fabulous Place
If you are afraid of missing out on all the fabulous places we post, or just want to be the first to know, then sign up to the Fabulous North.
Each week we will email you all the brand new places that we visit.
Sign Up To Alerts
Find Us On Facebook
We post all our new places daily on our Facebook Groups page, so join the group today and be notified when we add a new place.
Join Our Facebook GroupFinchale Priory was listed in Religious Place // County Durham // Framwellgate Moor