Exploring Fountains Abbey
Fountains Abbey was
established by Benedictine monks from St Mary's Abbey in York, in 1132.
It is one of the largest
and best preserved ruined Cistercian monasteries in England, located
approximately 5 kilometres south-west of Ripon in North Yorkshire, near to the
village of Aldfield.
The Abbey was abruptly
closed down in 1539 in the Dissolution of the Monasteries ordered by Henry
VIII, and the abbot, prior and monks were sent away with pensions.
Fountains Abbey today - The
estate was sold by the Crown to a merchant, Sir Richard Gresham. It remained in
private hands until the 1960s, including William and John Aislabie who designed
Studley Royal water garden of which the abbey became an integral part of. The
National Trust bought the estate from the West Riding County Council in 1983.
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