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Roche Abbey: the infirmary
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The infirmary complex at Roche stood to the
south-east of the monastery. Here the inhabitants were removed
from the cloister buildings and the daily cycle of conventual life.
Whilst separate they were nonetheless a part of the community and
a covered passage linked the infirmary buildings with the cloister.
This passage ran from the north end of the ‘day-room’ to
the door of the infirmary, and traces of the foundation of the
wall are visible today. The infirmary dates from the early thirteenth
century, although there were major alterations and rebuilding in
the fourteenth century. Not all the site has been excavated and
the arrangement of the complex – where the buildings stood,
how they were used and which of these were occupied by the abbot – is
not entirely understood. There is more to be learned, but this
requires further exploration and excavation of the site.
A spacious, aisled hall would have stood at the heart of the infirmary
complex. This would have been airy and warm, or at least warmer
than the monks’ dormitory where heating was forbidden - the
infirmary was one of the few places where it was permitted to have
a fire.
Privacy and comfort
At Tintern
Abbey in Monmouthshire
individual cells with fireplaces were created in the fifteenth
century to provide greater privacy
and comfort for the inmates. In the late fourteenth century
the infirmary at Meaux,
Yorkshire, was divided into small chambers |
The hall originally would have been open plan
with the beds arranged around the sides and the space in the centre
used
for eating and perhaps also for exercise, but it is likely that
the infirmary hall at Roche, as elsewhere, was later divided into
individual cubicles to provide privacy and comfort. It is not known
where the infirmary hall at Roche was situated. It may have been
located to the north-east of the monks’ latrine-block, in
an unexcavated part of the site, or in the two-storey oblong building,
adjacent, although this may have been where the infirmarer had
his lodgings. In addition to the aisled hall the infirmary complex
probably included a chapel, cloister and service buildings, as
well as private quarters for the infirmarer.
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