Sack Friary, Bristol was a friary in Bristol, England. It was established in 1266 and dissolved in 1286.[1]
The mendicant religious order was known as the Friars of the Sack and the Brothers of Penitence.[a] The friars first appeared in England in 1257,[3] with the order apparently originating in Italy, where they were known as "Fratres de Sacco".[2][b] The order began in 1251 and expanded into Britain, France, Spain, Germany and Palestine.[2][4] The Second Council of Lyon took up the question of limiting mendicant religious orders. In 1274, the four major orders-the Franciscans, the Dominicans, the Carmelites and the Austin Friars were allowed to remain with the lesser orders instructed to disband.[5][c]
The first mention of the order in Bristol was circa 1266 when Henry III of England granted the friars six oaks from Selwood Forest for building.[7] Records of the 1287 Pleas of the Crown establish that there was a house of Friars of the Sack before that time, but no one is certain where it was located.[8] The last mention of the order in Bristol is found on a document dated October 31, 1322. The document refers to a tenement outside Bristol Temple Gate located near the church of the "Friars di saccis" signed by Simon de Ely, burgess of Bristol to William de Cameleigh.[9]