6 June 2026 Stamford, Crowland, Castles Rising and Acre, and a Priory
Raining day in England in the morning, sunny with spotty showers in the afternoon. Typical English weather today.
Apologies. No more whining about rental cars and parking in England. You don't want to read it, and that's all there is. Nothing like killing a good blog with some complaining. No more from me, Promise.
All Saints Church in Stamford was supposed to be open at 9am, but it was all locked up when I got there. I walked around the building, but that was about it. My ancestors who were associated with this Church were:
I knew I was going to be early at Crowland Abbey since I couldn't get into the Stamford Church, so I walked around the Church, and waited in my car until the church was opened at 1100. What most is that the remaining archway of the Abbey is still standing next to the church.
The BIG ancestor I have associated with this Abbey is Waltheof, Earl of Northumberland, Huntingdon, and Northampton. I blogged about Waltheof on my trip 3 years ago when I was in Winchester (17 July 2023).In a nutshell, Waltheof was an Anglo-Saxon Earl, who fought with King Harold against William I at the Battle of Hastings. William, decided to let Waltheof keep his lands and titles, and even married off his niece (Judith de Lens) to Waltheof, in hopes of bringing his Anglo-Saxon and Norman subjects closer together.
Waltheof either didn't understand Norman politics, or was just a little dense. Soon after his marriage, William's niece started asking for a divorce. Then, Waltheof started hanging out with some disgruntled Vikings (Sweyn II) who wanted to unseat William, so they attacked York in 1069. When they left the Country one year later, Waltheof begged forgiveness, and was reinstated back his titles and lands.
In 1072, William expelled Gospatric, Waltheof's brother, who fled the country into exile. Waltheof was given his brother's lands, and started building Durham Castle at that time. In 1075, Waltheof decided to back another revolt of the Barons against William, but his wife Judith told the Archbishop Lanfranc, who told William who was in Normandy, and Waltheof's welcome had just run out.
Now the volunteer at the church who was telling me this story added a few details. He said that there were many Norman Nobles who were very envious of Waltheof's lands, and wanted him out of the way so they could have a shot at them. He also had a few details about Waltheof's execution St, Giles Hill in Winchester.
So as Waltheof is about to have his head leave his body, he started whispering the Lord's Prayer. He was almost done when the executioners axe did it's dirty work, and Waltheof's Head and Shoulder weren't together anymore. But when his bodiless head rolled on the ground, the witnesses could see Waltheof finish the prayer, even though just his lips were moving. Being a little frightened by what they saw, they quickly buried him in a ditch, and left his there.
His body was removed by monks from Crowland Abbey, and he was buried in the Chapter House there. In 1092, a fire broke out at the Chapter House, and they needed to move Waltheof's remains, so they reburied him in the Abbey Church. The volunteer said that when they removed his body, the skin was pale, not decomposed. The smell was sweet, not rotten, and it looked like he was whole. This was regarded as a miracle, and the abbey, which had a financial interest in the matter began to publicize it. As a result, pilgrims began to visit Waltheof's tomb. He was commemorated on 31 August 1092.
Wikipedia says that it was reported that Waltheof's head had reattached itself to his shoulders. Who knows what really happened, but Sainthood wasn't going to happen to him. Coincidentally, Waltheof's Grandson, another Waltheof (Abbey of Melrose) died in 1159, and became Saint Waltheof. It appears that the grandson had the same thing happen to his body after death, and it became whole enough to qualify for sainthood.
The next stop was Castle Rising. It was built by the Norman Knight, William d' Aubigny II around 1140. Aubigny marrried Henry I's widow, Alice of Louvian, in 1138, and with her came a huge dower, which included the Earlship of Arundel, and Arundel Castle. Castle Rising is in Norfolk, so Arundel Castle may have been the reason why the Duke of Norfolk actually lives in Sussex.
When William d' Aubigny, 1st Earl of Arundel's Granddaughter married John FitzAlan, 3rd Earl of Oswestry, he assumed the titles and castles of the d'Aubigny's and the FitzAlans have been the Lords of Arundel ever since.
However, back to Castle Rising. The Aubigny's liked to entertain, and used the Castle extensively for that. It eventually became the home for Queen Isabella, the the wife of Edward II, who had played a major role in his death and abdication (and my 20th Great Grandmother). Oother ancestors associated with Castle rising are:
Castle Acre and Castle Acre Priory are just over a mile from each other as the crow flies, but they were my last two stops today. Castle Acre (pronounced AAcker) was built by William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey in 1085. The ancestors asscociated with it include his wife Gundred st Omer, and several successive de Warenne who owned the castle. not much is said about it's importance, but by the 16th century, it was in a bad state of disrepair.
What stood out to me most about this castle was that it was constructed mainly of flint. I discussed how the Western Castles were mostly Sandstone, Southeastern castles were made of a lot of flint, and northern castles (or those built by really rich men) had Limestone construction materials. Unfortunately here, the mortar holding the flint together has aged so badly, that the flint is separating from the walls, creating masonry debris falling hazards. Much is the same for Castle Acre Priory.
Castle Acre Priory was founded as a Cluniac priory just after the castle was built. I didn't have any ancestors associated with it, but wanted to see it since it was so close. It's story is much the same as most Priories. Safe, up until the Dissolutions of the Monasteries, then gone. As I said before, it was mainly made of flint as well. this would explain why most of the buildings in town are also made of flint. The castle and the priory, after they were destroyed, provided much of the building materials for the local houses. Either way, its still a beautiful and peaceful ruin.
