Monastery information | |
---|---|
Order | Savigniac, Cistercian 1148 |
Established | 1155 |
Disestablished | 1538 |
Diocese | Diocese of York |
People | |
Important associated figures | Abbot Roger, Roger de Mowbray |
Site | |
Location | Byland, Coxwold, North Yorkshire, England |
Coordinates | 54°12′11″N1°09′33″W / 54.2031°N 1.1592°W |
Visible remains | substantial |
Public access | yes |
Byland Abbey is a ruined abbey and a small village in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire, England, in the North York Moors National Park.
It was founded as a Savigniac abbey in January 1135 and was absorbed by the Cistercian order in 1147. It was not an easy start for the community which had had to move five times before settling at New Byland, near Coxwold in 1177. [1]
Its early history was marked by disputes with no fewer than four other religious establishments: Furness Abbey, Calder Abbey, Rievaulx Abbey and Newburgh Priory. [2] However, once it had overcome these setbacks, it was described, in the late 14th century, as "one of the three shining lights of the north". [3] Its financial success was not as great as such abbeys as Rievaulx, but it was famed for its sheep rearing and wool exports. Its church was said to be among the finest 12th-century churches in Europe. [4]
In October 1322, King Edward II was at Byland Abbey when the Battle of Old Byland took place. The marauding Scots caught Edward so unaware that he fled to York, leaving many precious items behind. [note 1] [2] [5] [6]
In the late 12th century the abbey had a complement of 36 monks and 100 lay brothers, but by the time of the dissolution in November 1538, the abbey was host only to 25 monks and an abbot. [7] In 1539, its site was granted to Sir William Pickering. [8]
The site is now maintained by English Heritage [9] and is scheduled as an ancient monument by Historic England with grade I listed status. [10] [11] In October 2017, the west frontage of the church, including the famed Rose Window, underwent extensive conservation work to repair water damage and to repoint the stone walls. [12]
Numerous Latin manuscripts were produced at and owned by Byland Abbey, of which twenty-seven are known to have survived. [13] The abbey notably produced a 15th century cartulary, [14] now British Library Egerton MS 2823. One of the manuscripts owned by Byland Abbey in the Middle Ages is noted for containing a collection of twelve ghost stories. The manuscript is now London, British Library Royal MS 15 A xx, produced in the twelfth to thirteenth centuries, primarily containing a copy of the Elucidarium and some tracts by Cicero. However, in the early fifteenth century, an anonymous scribe, known in scholarship simply as 'a monk of Byland', added some extra texts, also in Latin, on previously blank pages (folios 140-43, in the body of the manuscript, and folio 163 b at the end). [15] [16] These are a series of twelve ghost stories, mostly set locally, which were presumably intended for inclusion in sermons as exempla and which reflect orally circulating folklore in Yorkshire at the time. While not a major literary production in their own time, these stories have since come to be regarded as important evidence for popular belief regarding ghosts in medieval north-west Europe. [17] [18] [19] [20]
A facsimile of the manuscript is available online, [21] the texts were edited by M. R. James, [16] and they were translated by A. J. Grant [22] (while seven are also paraphrased in English by Andrew Joynes). [23]
An example, the third story, runs in English translation as follows:
III. Regarding the spirit of Robert son of Robert de Boltebi from Killeburne, confined in a cemetery.
Remembered because the aforesaid younger Robert died and was interred in a cemetery but was wont to depart from the tomb at night and to disturb and frighten off the villagers, and the dogs of the village would follow him and bark loudly. At last the young men of the village spoke together, proposing to capture him if by any means they were able, and convening at the cemetery. But having seen him, all fled except two of them. One, called Robert Foxton, caught him as he emerged from the cemetery and laid him over the church gate, loudly and courageously shouting "You hold fast until I come to you". The other replied, "You dash quickly to the minister so that he may be conjured, since, God willing, because I have him fast, I will hang on until the arrival of the priest". The priest of the parish indeed hurried quickly and conjured him the holy name of the Trinity and by the virtue of Jesus Christ until he responded to his questions.
At that conjuration, he spoke in his guts (and not with his tongue, but as if in a large empty jar) and confessed his many crimes. When he knew these, the priest absolved him but he insisted that the aforesaid capturers would not reveal in any way his confession, and otherwise he rested in peace, having been set in order with God.
Impressive remains can still be seen, in the care of English Heritage, including the lower half of a huge rose window which was the inspiration for the same window at York Minster. The west front of the church stands almost to its full height, while the monastic building ruins have a height of about 5 metres (16 ft) in places. [24] [25] An interesting feature is the preservation of some of the brightly coloured medieval floor tiles. An altar table (mensa) was also recovered, although that is now in Ampleforth Abbey, and a stone lectern base from the chapter house is the only example of its kind in Britain. [26] In 2017, conservation work was undertaken to preserve the remains. [27]
The limestone gatehouse also survives, as a ruin. The remains consist of moulded imposts supporting moulded capitals carrying a round arch with two moulded orders and a hood mould. Attached to it is a wall containing a blocked doorway with a pointed arch and a moulded surround. [28]
Kirkstall Abbey is a ruined Cistercian monastery in Kirkstall, north-west of Leeds city centre in West Yorkshire, England. It is set in a public park on the north bank of the River Aire. It was founded c. 1152. It was disestablished during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII.
The Cistercians, officially the Order of Cistercians, are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contributions of the highly-influential Bernard of Clairvaux, known as the Latin Rule. They are also known as Bernardines, after Saint Bernard himself, or as White Monks, in reference to the colour of the "cuculla" or cowl worn by the Cistercians over their habits, as opposed to the black cowl worn by Benedictines.
Fountains Abbey is one of the largest and best preserved ruined Cistercian monasteries in England. It is located approximately 3 miles (5 km) south-west of Ripon in North Yorkshire, near to the village of Aldfield. Founded in 1132, the abbey operated for 407 years, becoming one of the wealthiest monasteries in England until its dissolution, by order of Henry VIII, in 1539.
Jervaulx Abbey in East Witton in North Yorkshire, 14 mi (23 km) north-west of the city of Ripon, was one of the great Cistercian abbeys of Yorkshire, England, dedicated to St Mary in 1156. It is a Grade I listed building.
Rievaulx Abbey was a Cistercian abbey in Rievaulx, near Helmsley, in the North York Moors National Park, North Yorkshire, England. It was one of the great abbeys in England until it was seized in 1538 under Henry VIII during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The wider site was awarded Scheduled Ancient Monument status in 1915 and the abbey was brought into the care of the then Ministry of Works in 1917. The ruins of its main buildings are today a tourist attraction, owned and maintained by English Heritage.
Hailes Abbey is a former Cistercian abbey, in the small village of Hailes, two miles northeast of Winchcombe, Gloucestershire, England. It was founded in 1246 as a daughter establishment of Beaulieu Abbey. The abbey was dissolved by Henry VIII in 1539. Little remains of the abbey. It is a Grade I listed building and a scheduled monument.
Aelred of Rievaulx, O Cist. ; also Ailred, Ælred, and Æthelred; was an English Cistercian monk, abbot of Rievaulx from 1147 until his death, and known as a writer. He is venerated by the Catholic Church as a saint and by some Anglicans.
Kilburn is a village in the civil parish of Kilburn High and Low, in the Hambleton District in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It lies on the edge of the North York Moors National Park, and 6.2 miles (10 km) north of Easingwold.
Furness Abbey, or St. Mary of Furness, is a former monastery located to the north of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. The abbey dates back to 1123 and was once the second-wealthiest and most powerful Cistercian monastery in the country, behind Fountains Abbey, prior to its dissolution during the English Reformation. The abbey contains a number of individual Grade I Listed Buildings and is a Scheduled Monument.
Coxwold is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, England, in the North York Moors National Park. It is 18 miles north of York and is where the Rev. Laurence Sterne wrote A Sentimental Journey.
Rievaulx is a small village and civil parish in Rye Dale within the North York Moors National Park near Helmsley in North Yorkshire, England and is located in what was the inner court of Rievaulx Abbey, close to the River Rye. The population of the civil parish as taken at the 2011 Census was less than 100. Details are included in the civil parish of Sproxton, North Yorkshire.
Cistercian architecture is a style of architecture associated with the churches, monasteries and abbeys of the Roman Catholic Cistercian Order. It was heavily influenced by Abbot Bernard of Clairvaux, who believed that churches should avoid superfluous ornamentation so as not to distract from prayer. Cistercian architecture was simple and utilitarian. Although a few images of religious subjects were allowed, such as the crucifix, elaborate figures common in medieval churches were prohibited. Bernard noted their capacity for distracting monks in a famous letter. Early Cistercian architecture shows a transition between Romanesque and Gothic architecture. Later abbeys were constructed in Renaissance and Baroque styles, which were more ornate by nature.
The Battle of Old Byland was a significant encounter between Scots and English troops in Yorkshire in October 1322, forming part of the Wars of Scottish Independence. It was a victory for the Scots, the most significant since Bannockburn.
Calder Abbey in Cumbria was a Savigniac monastery founded in 1134 by Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester, and moved to this site following a refoundation in 1142. It became Cistercian in 1148. It is near the village of Calderbridge.
Walter Espec was a prominent military and judicial figure of the reign of Henry I of England.
Stocking Abbey was an abbey in the village of Oldstead, North Yorkshire, England.
Sir Roger de Mowbray was an Anglo-Norman magnate. He had substantial English landholdings. A supporter of King Stephen, with whom he was captured at Lincoln in 1141, he rebelled against Henry II. He made multiple religious foundations in Yorkshire. He took part in the Second Crusade and later returned to the Holy Land, where he was captured and died in 1187.
Scawton is a village and former civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The hamlet lies just east of Sutton Bank, north of the A170 road, and 5 miles (8 km) west of Helmsley, in the Hambleton Hills. The wider parish was the setting for the Battle of Old Byland, on Scawton Moor to the south. The road through the village used to link the two abbeys at Byland and Rievaulx, with the church, and possibly the village pub, being instigated by the monks for the use of travellers. In 1961 the parish had a population of 84.
Thirsk Castle was a defensive Medieval castle in the town of Thirsk, in North Yorkshire, England. The castle was one of three held by the de Mowbray family in Yorkshire.
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