Egglestone Abbey is a ruined

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

abbey on the southern (

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

) bank of the

River Tees The River Tees (), in Northern England, rises on the eastern slope of Cross Fell in the North Pennines and flows eastwards for to reach the North Sea between Hartlepool and Redcar near Middlesbrough. The modern day history of the river has be ...

, in northern England, south-east of

Barnard Castle Barnard Castle (, ) is a market town on the north bank of the River Tees, in County Durham, Northern England. The town is named after and built around a medieval castle ruin. The town's Bowes Museum's has an 18th-century Silver Swan automato ...

. The abbey was historically within the

North Riding of Yorkshire The North Riding of Yorkshire is a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point is at Mickle Fell with 2,585 ft (788 metres). From the Restoration it was used as ...

, but since 1974 has been in

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

. The site buildings are protected as a

Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

and maintained by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

; admission is free.

History

The Abbey was founded in the late 12th century at some point between 1168 and 1198 most likely by a member of the Multon family; the oldest document about the abbey dated to 1198 mentions a fine by the overlord Ralph Lenham to Ralph Multon in regard to alienated land. The founders were the Premonstratensians who wore a white habit and became known as the White Canons. They followed a code of austerity similar to that of

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

monks, unlike monks of other orders, they were exempt from the strict Episcopal discipline. They undertook preaching and pastoral work in the region (such as distributing meat and drink). They chose the site for the abbey because of its isolation, close proximity to a river and the supply of local stone for its construction. In common with many early monasteries, the original church at Egglestone Abbey was enlarged, and partly rebuilt, about one hundred years later. It is this later church that survives today. The abbey was always poor and at times had difficulty maintaining the required number of canons (twelve – from the

Twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...

). Egglestone Abbey was to suffer at the hands of Scottish invaders and the rowdy English army who were billeted there in 1346 on their way to the

Battle of Neville's Cross The Battle of Neville's Cross took place during the Second War of Scottish Independence on 17 October 1346, half a mile (800 m) to the west of Durham, England. An invading Scottish army of 12,000 led by King David II was defeated with heavy loss ...

outside

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

. The Abbey was dissolved in 1540 by king

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

. The lands were granted in 1548 to Robert Strelly, who converted some of the buildings into a great private house that was abandoned in the mid-19th century. Eventually, much of the abbey was pulled down and some of the stonework was used to pave the stable yard at the nearby

Rokeby Park Rokeby Park is a country house in the Palladian style in the civil parish of Rokeby, in Northern England. It is close to the confluence of the River Tees and River Greta, near Greta Bridge in what is now County Durham. It was historically in the ...

in the 19th century. The ruins were

grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

in 1987.

References

Sources

External links

Image of the abbey ruins from above in 1947

Egglestone Abbey: English Heritage
{{authority control Monasteries in County Durham Premonstratensian monasteries in England River Tees English Heritage sites in County Durham Ruins in County Durham Tourist attractions in County Durham English Heritage sites in Yorkshire Grade I listed buildings in County Durham Christian monasteries established in the 12th century 12th-century establishments in England Grade I listed monasteries Grade I listed ruins Monasteries dissolved under the English Reformation

History

See also

References

Sources

External links