Sopwell Priory

Sopwell Priory (also known as Sopwell Nunnery) was built c. 1140 in Hertfordshire, England by the Benedictine abbot of St Albans Abbey, Geoffrey de Gorham. It was founded as the Priory of St Mary of Sopwell and was a cell of St Albans Abbey.

Juliana Berners, a prioress during the 15th century, is believed to be the author of the Boke of St Albans published in 1486.

Following the dissolution of St Albans Abbey in 1539, Sopwell Priory was bought by Sir Richard Lee, a military engineer and commander of King Henry VIII. He tore the priory down and built a house on the site which he named Lee Hall. The house was later renamed Sopwell House, and its ruins, which are now managed by St Albans Museums, remain today on Cottonmill Lane, near the centre of St Albans.