Ranulf Flambard, the Chief Minister of William II and the Dean of Twynham, began to build the Priory in 1094. The town was renamed Christchurch, instead of Twynham, due to the introduction of a church in the town. It was used as a church for the local town’s people.

The Priory consists of Norman architecture, like the heavy columns and round arches of the nave, which can be seen when visiting the Priory. The Priory is the longest parish church in England, with a nave of over-311 feet long.

In 1500’s, during the reign of Henry VIII, the Priory came under threat of being demolished. Being a Catholic leader, Henry VIII demanded that many churches in England be demolished. In 1539, John Draper, the last prior of the Priory, surrendered the monastic buildings on the church grounds and they were demolished. However, with the support of the town’s people, he was able to save the Priory itself. The Priory and surrounding land was declared the Churchwarden’s and the inhabitant’s of Christchurch.

Today the Priory is still used as the town’s church. In the Christchurch Priory Cartulary there is over 1,300 documents and chartered copies about the Priory and town, some even dating back to the 14th Century, proving that the Priory stood throughout Medieval times.