Priory

Religious house presided over by a prior or prioress. In certain orders, especially those following the Augustinian Rule, the priory is the normal unit. The Benedictine and allied orders distinguish between “conventual” (self- governing) and “obedientary” (dependencies of abbeys) priories. In medieval England there was also the “cathedral” priory, where the bishop's chapter was constituted by an independent Benedictine priory.