Walden Abbey Walden Abbey Walden Abbey was a Benedictine monastery in Saffron Walden, Essex, England founded by Geoffrey de Mandeville, 1st Earl of Essex between 1136 and 1143. Originally a priory, it was elevated to the status of an abbey in 1190. Soon after its founding, Earl Geoffrey was arrested by King Stephen. When released on surrender of his castles, the earl launched a rebellion that lasted over a year. When he was killed, he had also been excommunicated and could not be buried at the priory. Walden suffered without a clear patron through the rest of Stephen's reign. Even when Geoffrey
Saffron Walden their religion. Saffron Walden County High School is a large co-educational academy with over 2000 pupils. Located to the west of the town centre, it was rated outstanding in its most recent Ofsted report in 2012. The school replaced Saffron Walden Grammar School, which was established in 1521 by the town's Holy Trinity Guild and Dame Joan Bradbury, a local benefactor. Dame Bradbury also founded Dame Bradbury's School on Ashdon Road. There has been a school on this site since 1317 but it was in 1521 that Dame Bradbury made this school available for local people. For the first four