Swingfield Preceptory
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| Swingfield Preceptory | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Coordinates | 51°09′06″N 1°11′26″E / 51.1518°N 1.1906°E |
| OS grid reference | TR2322844015 |
| Built | 13th Century |
| Built for | Order of St. John of Jerusalem |
| Restored | 1972-4 |
| Governing body | English Heritage |
| Official name | St John's Commandery |
| Type | Grade II* |
| Designated | 17 October 1988 |
| Reference no. | 1242361 |
  St Johns Commandery location in Kent | |
Swingfield Preceptory (or St John's Commandery, Swingfield) was a priory about 5 miles north of Folkestone, Kent on the south coast of England.
The Preceptory (headquarters of certain orders of monastic knights) was taken over by the Knights Hospitaller in 1180 after sisters of the same order were moved to Buckland Priory.[1] It was suppressed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries and leased on 16 March 1541 to John Thorgood and Thomas Horseley for twenty-one years.[1] It then passed through many families (including Sir Anthony Aucher, Sir Henry Palmer, of Wingham and Sir Thomas Palmer, 4th Baronet, of Wingham).[2]
The 13th-century St John's Chapel still survives on Swanton Lane and is under the care of English Heritage.
