Fountains Abbey
| Cistercian Abbey Fountains | |
|---|---|
 Exterior of the abbey with a view of the tower |
|
| location |
 United Kingdom Yorkshire |
| Coordinates: | 54 ° 6 ′ 41 ″ N , 1 ° 34 ′ 54 ″ W |
| Serial number according to Janauschek |
89 |
| founding year | 1135 |
| Year of dissolution / annulment |
1539 |
| Mother monastery | Clairvaux Monastery |
| Primary Abbey | Clairvaux Monastery |
|
Daughter monasteries |
1139: Kirkstead |
Fountains Abbey is the ruins of a Cistercian monastery in the English North Yorkshire and is now part of a large park. The monastery was founded in 1132 and existed until 1539 when it was dissolved by Henry VIII in the course of the dissolution of the monastery . Although partially in ruins, Fountains Abbey is one of the largest and best-preserved Cistercian complexes in England. After the monastery was dissolved, the ruins were incorporated into the parks of the Studley Royal Water Garden , and together they are a UNESCO World Heritage Site .
history
The monastery was founded in 1132 by 13 monks who were expelled from St Mary's Abbey in York after a dispute over the direction of the denomination . The then Archbishop of York , Thurstan , assigned them the property of the later Fountains Abbey. After the construction of the monastery, they joined the Cistercians three years later. The monastery initially lived mainly from sheep breeding , with the increasing number of lay brothers taking on a large part of the work that came about and, to a lesser extent, exercising other crafts.
In particular, through the work of the lay brothers, Fountains Abbey became one of the wealthiest monasteries in England in the 13th century. In addition to sheep breeding, iron processing and horse breeding were now important pillars of economic success. Over time, significantly more was earned than was necessary for the monastery to be self-sufficient.
In the 14th century, along with an economic crisis, the plague , Scottish raids and poor harvests, as well as the financial mismanagement of the community, all led to the monastery collapsing. Many lay brothers left Fountains Abbey or were loaned out to peasants as labor. Sheep farming was replaced by dairy farming by the 15th century .
Still, the Fountains Abbey brothers continued to have great influence within the Cistercian order. The abbots were part of parliament . However, during a renewed boom in the abbey, the monastery was dissolved in 1539 in the course of the dissolution of the monastery by Henry VIII.
Current condition
The abbey was sold several times along with the surrounding park and was partially restored in the 18th and 19th centuries. Fountains Abbey was a draw for paying visitors as early as the 19th century. Since 1983 the site has been owned by the National Trust , which is carrying out further restoration work on the abbey and other buildings. With around 300,000 visitors per year, the 333 hectare site of the Studley Royal Water Garden , which houses the abbey, is one of the most visited objects of the National Trust. In 1986 the entire complex was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Web links
- Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal Water Garden at the National Trust
- Catholic Encyclopedia
- UNESCO World Heritage List: Studley Royal Park including the Ruins of Fountains Abbey
Individual evidence
Heritage: Durham Castle and Durham Cathedral (1986) | Ironbridge Gorgewith The Iron Bridge (1986) | Studley Royal Park with the ruins of Fountains Abbey (1986) | Stonehenge, Avebury, and Associated Monuments of Megalithic Culture (1986) | King Edward's castles and city walls in Gwynedd (1986) | Blenheim Palace (1987) | Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey with St Margaret's Church (1987) | Downtown Bath (1987) | Borders of the Roman Empire : Hadrian's Wall (1987) and Antonine Wall (2008) | Tower of London (1988) | Cathedral , St Augustine's Abbey and St Martin's Church in Canterbury (1988) | Edinburgh Old and New Town (1995) | Maritime Greenwich (1997) | The Heart of Neolithic Orkney (1999) | Old town of Saint George's (Bermuda) with fortifications (2000) | Blaenavon industrial landscape (2000) | New Lanark Industrial Model Estate (2001) | Saltaire industrial village (2001) | Derwent Valley Mills (2001) | Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew (2003) | Liverpool - Maritime Trade City (2004, R ) | Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape (2006) | Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal (2009) | Forth Bridge (2015) | Gorham Cave (2016) | Lake District (2017) | Jodrell Bank Radio Observatory (2019)
Natural Heritage: Giant's Causeway and Coast (1986) | Henderson (Pitcairn Islands) (1988) | Gough Island and Inaccessible (1995) | Dorset and East Devon Coast (2001)
Cultural / Natural Heritage: St. Kilda (Scotland) (1986)