| Studley Royal Park including the Ruins of Fountains Abbey* | |
|---|---|
| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
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| State Party |  United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | i, iv |
| Reference | 372 |
| Region† | Europe and North America |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 1986 (10th Session) |
| * Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. † Region as classified by UNESCO. |
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Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire, England, is a ruined Cistercian monastery, founded in 1132. Studley Royal Park is a park containing and developed around the ruins of the Cistercian Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire, England. A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex As of 2008 there are a total of 878 World Heritage Sites located in 145 "State Parties" The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex This is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Europe. Asia Minor, Cyprus, all of the Aegean Islands, the Canaries A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county in England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland This article is about ruins in Architecture; for other meanings see Ruins (disambiguation. This article concerns the buildings occupied by monastics. For the life inside monasteries and its historical roots see Monasticism. Fountains Abbey is one of the largest and best preserved Cistercian houses in England. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland It is a Grade I listed building and owned by the National Trust. A listed building in the United Kingdom is a building or other structure officially designated as being of special architectural historical or cultural significance The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organization in England, Wales Along with the adjacent Studley Royal Water Garden, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Studley Royal Park is a park containing and developed around the ruins of the Cistercian Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire, England. United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on November 16 A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex
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History
Fountains Abbey was founded in 1132 following a dispute and riot at St. Mary's Abbey in York. The Abbey of St Mary in York, England, is a ruined Benedictine abbey that lies in what are now the Yorkshire Museum Gardens, to the west York ( is an historic Walled city sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. Following the riot, thirteen monks were exiled and after unsuccessfully attempting to return to the early 6th century Rule of St Benedict, were taken into the protection of Thurstan, Archbishop of York. Thurstan, or Turstin (c 1070&ndash6 February 1140 was a medieval Archbishop of York. The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He provided them with a site in the valley of the River Skell. The enclosed valley had all the required materials for the creation of a monastery, providing shelter from the weather, stone and timber for building, and a running supply of water. [1]. The monks applied to join the Cistercian order in AD1132.
The abbey operated until 1539, when Henry VIII ordered the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 &ndash 28 January 1547 was King of England and Lord of Ireland, later King of Ireland and claimant to the Kingdom of The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the formal process between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded The Abbey buildings and over 500 acres (2 km²) of land were then sold by the Crown, on October 1, 1540 [1], to Sir Richard Gresham, the London merchant, father of the founder of the Royal Exchange, Sir Thomas Gresham. Events 331 BC - Alexander the Great defeats Darius III of Persia in the Battle of Gaugamela. Sir Richard Gresham (1494 &ndash 1549 was an English Merchant, Lord Mayor of London, and Member of parliament. Sir Thomas Gresham (c 1519 &ndash 21 November, 1579) was an English Merchant and Financier who worked for King Edward VI of England [2]
Architecture
Construction of the Abbey began in 1132, with rock quarried locally, although the original monastery buildings received considerable additions and alterations in the later period of the order, causing deviations from the strict Cistercian type. The church stands a short distance to the north of the River Skell, the buildings of the abbey stretching down to and across the stream. An abbey (from Latin abbatia derived from Syriac abba "father" is a Christian Monastery or The cloister is to the south, with the three-aisled chapter-house and calefactory opening from its eastern walk, and the refectory, with the kitchen and buttery attached, at right angles to its southern walk. A cloister (from Latin claustrum) is a part of Cathedral, Monastic and Abbey architecture A chapter house is a building or room attached to a Cathedral or Collegiate church in which meetings are held
Parallel with the western walk is an immense vaulted substructure, incorrectly styled the cloisters, serving as cellars and store-rooms, and supporting the dormitory of the conversi (lay brothers) above. In the most common usage lay brothers are those members of Catholic Religious orders particularly of monastic orders occupied primarily with manual labor and with This building extended across the river. At its southwest corner were the necessaries, also built, as usual, above the swiftly flowing stream. The monks' dormitory was in its usual position above the chapter-house, to the south of the transept.
Peculiarities of arrangement include the position of the kitchen, between the refectory and calefactory, and of the infirmary (unless there is some error in its designation) above the river to the west, adjoining the guest-houses. In addition, there is a greatly lengthened choir, commenced by Abbot John of York, 1203–1211, and carried on by his successor, terminating, like Durham Cathedral, in an eastern transept, the work of Abbot John of Kent, 1220–1247, and to the tower, added not long before the dissolution by Abbot Huby, 1494–1526, in a very unusual position at the northern end of the north transept. The Cathedral Church of Christ Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly referred to as Durham Cathedral, in the city of Durham, England
Among other apartments, for the designation of which see the ground-plan, was a domestic oratory or chapel, 46½ ft by 23 ft, and a kitchen, 50 ft by 38 ft. The whole arrangements and character of the building bespeak a rich and powerful feudal lord, not the humble father of a body of hard-working brethren, bound by vows to a life of poverty and self-denying toil. In the words of Dean Milman, "the superior, once a man bowed to the earth with humility, care-worn, pale, emaciated, with a coarse habit bound with a cord, with naked feet, had become an abbot on his curvetting palfrey, in rich attire, with his silver cross before him, travelling to take his place amid the lordliest of the realm. A Palfrey is a type of Horse highly valued as a riding horse in the Middle Ages. A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other dividing one or two of the lines in half " — (Lat. Christ. vol. iii. p. 330. ) However, worldly as some abbots and monks had become, the many visitors and tenants of the English monasteries would soon come to regret their loss, and the forced implementation of a dramatically more worldly regime. [3]
St Mary's Church (built c. Studley Royal Park is a park containing and developed around the ruins of the Cistercian Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire, England. 1873), designed by William Burges is also nearby. William Burges ( 2 December, 1827 &ndash 20 April, 1881) was an English Architect and Designer.
National Trust Property
Fountains Abbey is maintained by English Heritage, and owned by the National Trust. English Heritage is a Non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom government ( Department for Culture Media and Sport) with a broad remit of It is immediately adjacent to another National Trust property, Studley Royal Water Garden, with which it is jointly marketed. Studley Royal Park is a park containing and developed around the ruins of the Cistercian Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire, England. The Trust also owns Fountains Hall, to which there is partial public access. Fountains Hall is a Country house near Ripon in North Yorkshire, England, close to the World Heritage Site of Fountains Abbey
Gallery
 Exterior of Fountains Abbey from the South East |
 Exterior of Fountains Abbey, with focus on tower |
 Stonemason marks in the Chapter House |
 The monks' cellarium (where food was stored) |
References
- ^ History of the Abbey at the National Trust website, URL accessed January 28th, 2007
- ^ Estate history at the National Trust website, URL accessed January 28th, 2007
- ^ A History of the Protestant Reformation in England and Ireland. William Cobbett, 1826
See also
- Fountains Hall
- List of monasteries dissolved by Henry VIII of England
- Studley Royal Water Garden
- Stonemasonry
External links
- Fountains Abbey website
- Catholic Encyclopedia
- Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal Water Garden information at the National Trust
- UNESCO World Heritage List: Studley Royal Park including the Ruins of Fountains Abbey
- Walbran's Guide to Ripon, Fountains Abbey and Places in the Vicinity, 1876: "Fountains Abbey: An Historical Introduction"
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