Fountains Abbey, North Yorkshire

 Easter Week at Fountains Abbey
Vaulted arches of the cellarium

Fountains Abbey - the largest monastic ruins in England

I think that Fountains Abbey is my husband's favorite site to visit in England. Not only is the history of Fountains interesting, but the extensive ruins are open to visitors. It's easy to spend several hours there. We've done that twice, and there's still much to see that we didn't get to.


From the National Trust website:


'A dispute and riot at St Mary's Abbey in York led to the founding of Fountains Abbey in 1132. After pleading unsuccessfully to return to the early 6th century Rule of St Benedict, 13 monks were exiled and taken into the protection of Thurstan, Archbishop of York.

He provided them with a site in the valley of the little River Skell in which they could found a new, more devout monastery. Although described as a place "more fit for wild beasts than men to inhabit" it had all the essential materials for the creation of a monastery: shelter from the weather, stone and timber for building, and plenty of water.

Within three years, the little settlement at Fountains had been admitted to the austere Cistercian Order (founded in France in 1098). Under its rules they lived a rigorous daily life, committed to long periods of silence, a diet barely above subsistence level, and wore the regulation habit of coarse undyed sheep's wool (underwear was forbidden), which earned them the name "White Monks."

One of the Abbey's most important developments was the introduction of the Cistercian system of lay brothers. They were usually illiterate and relieved the monks from routine jobs, giving them more opportunity to dedicate their time to God.

Many served as masons, tanners, shoemakers and smiths, but their chief role was to look after the Abbey's vast flocks of sheep, which lived on the huge estate stretching westwards from Fountains to the Lake District and northwards to Teesside. 

Without the lay brothers, Fountains could never have attained its great wealth or economic importance.'  Read more of the article here. 

My favorite Fountains Abbey photo

At the top of one of the arches

The spring house

I think this is the most often photographed portion of the Fountain Abbey ruins

 The  mill - Photo from The National Trust

The oldest parts of the mill are actually older than the visible parts of the Abbey. The mill, the best-preserved water mill in England, was a working mill for 850 years. It's the only 12th century corn mill in Britain.

Although we saw the mill on our last visit to Fountains Abbey, we didn't get photos because our camera card was filled by that time. One should always carry a memory stick or second camera card. Then again, it's hardly our fault that England has so many interesting places to visit!

Fountains Abbey is not far from Ripon. Visiting Ripon Cathedral and Fountains Abbey on the same day is a bit overwhelming, but neither should be missed. Fountains Abbey definitely takes two visits at least.

While there, we watched a really cute video, 'The Silent Years' about a novice monk. Here's a wee taste of it that I found on YouTube. Trust me, it was a lot funnier before they decided it needed narration.




Hope you have a good weekend. :-)

Author, Second Chance - A Tale of Two Puppies

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