Castle Acre Priory was a Cluniac priory in the village of Castle Acre, Norfolk, England, and dedicated to St Mary, St Peter, and St Paul.
It is thought to have been founded in 1089 by William de Warenne, 2nd Earl of Surrey (the son of the 1st Earl of Surrey who had founded England's first Cluniac priory at Lewes in 1077). The order originated from Burgundy.
Originally the priory was sited within the walls of Castle Acre Castle, but this proved too small and inconvenient for the monks; hence, the priory was relocated to the present site in the castle grounds about one year later.
The priory was dissolved in 1537, and its ruins are in the care of English Heritage, along with the nearby Castle Acre Bailey Gate and Castle Acre Castle.
The church itself was consecrated sometime between 1146 and 1148.
Like other Cluniac houses, Castle Acre Priory was directly subject to the authority of the Abbot of Cluny; for practical reasons, however, the Prior of Lewes was usually instructed to act for the abbot when any problems arose at Castle Acre. However, this obedience owed to a foreign abbot caused difficulties when the kings of England were at odds with France and/or Burgundy.
In the mid 14th century the English Cluniacs settled this difficulty by buying a special legal recognition from the king as 'native' religious houses. The priory was home to some 20 to 30 monks. The nave of the church is one of the oldest parts of the ruin. Subsequent additions continued to be added until the priory was dissolved in 1537 under Henry VIII, and when the King gave the dissolved priory to the Duke of Norfolk complete with its estates, the remaining monks were turned out.
The Priory is cared for by English Heritage and a fee is charged if you wish to enter the site and discover more about the Priory and its history. It's free for English Heritage members. For more information click here.
There is parking near to the Priory but can be busy in the summer months.
To the right of the old gate house is a wooden gate pass through this gateway THERE IS PEDESTRIAN ACCESS.
To claim the find on this Virtual Cache you will need to complete the following.
1. At the posted coordinates take a photo of yourself, ( you do not need to show your face), or caching name, with the gate house in the back ground.
2. Make your way to the footpath ( waypoint 2) and head to the south end of the Priory ( waypoint 3)
a.Here take another photo of yourself or caching name with the priory in the background.
b.There is a notice board with three words on it. Please message me these three words.
Please feel free to log your find. I will contact you if there are any problems.
Finds without the above requirements will unfortunately have to be deleted.
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For full information on how you can expand the Church Micro series by sadexploration please read the Place your own Church Micro page before you contact him at churchmicro.co.uk
See also the Church Micro Statistics and Home pages for further information about the series.
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Virtual Rewards 5.0 - 2026-2027
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between February 3, 2026 and February 3, 2027. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 5.0 on the Geocaching Blog.