St Mary's Abbey, York
Encyclopedia
The Abbey of St Mary in York
, once the richest abbey in the north of England, is a ruined Benedictine
abbey that lies in what are now the Yorkshire Museum Gardens, on a steeply sloping site to the west of York Minster
. The original abbey on the site was founded in 1055 and dedicated to Saint Olave
. It was refounded in 1088 for Abbot Stephen and a group of monks from Whitby
by the Anglo-Breton magnate Alan Rufus, who laid the foundation stone of the Norman
church that year. The monks moved to York from a site at Lastingham
in Ryedale in the 1080s and are recorded there in Domesday. Following a dispute and riot in 1132, a party of reform-minded monks left to establish the Cistercian monastery of Fountains Abbey
. The surviving ruins date from a rebuilding programme begun in 1271 and finished by 1294.
The abbey's walled precincts were extended in the twelfth century, so that by 1266 it was enclosed within a wall nearly three-quarters of a mile long. In 1318 the abbot received royal permission to raise the height of the wall and crenelate it; a stretch of this wall still runs along Bootham
and Marygate to the River Ouse
.
The abbey church is aligned northeast-southwest, doubtless due to restrictions of the site. The Norman church had an apsidal
liturgical east end, and its side aisles also ended in apses, though they were square on the exterior. Rebuilding began in 1270, under the direction of abbot Simon de Warwick, and was swiftly completed during a single campaign, such was the financial strength of the abbey. This completed the abbey church whose ruins are a prominent feature in Museum Gardens. The Yorkshire Museum, built for the Yorkshire Philosophical Society, stands in part of the abbey cloister; parts of the east, south and west cloister walls were temporarily excavated in 1827-29 preparatory to digging the museum's foundations. Part of the richly carved chapter house
vestibule (c 1298-1307) survives, incorporated into Tempest Anderson Hall lecture theatre (1911-12).
The gatehouse in Marygate and its lodge formed part of a range of buildings that linked to the older church of St Olave by a chapel dedicated to Mary. Though work on the chapel and gatehouse was under way 1314 and completed in 1320, the surviving structures are mostly of fifteenth-century origin.
The abbot's house
, built of brick in 1483, survived as the "King's Manor" because it became the seat of the Council of the North
in 1539; the abbots of St Mary's and the abbey featured in the medieval and early modern ballads of Robin Hood
, with the abbot usually as Robin Hood's nemesis).
and one of the largest landholders in Yorkshire, was worth £2000 a year, when it was valued in 1539, during the dissolution of the monasteries
under Henry VIII
; it was closed and subsequently substantially destroyed. All that remains today are the north and west walls, plus a few other remnants: the half-timbered Pilgrims' Hospitium
, the West Gate and the 14th-century timber-framed Abbot's House (now called the King's Manor
). The walls include interval towers along the north and west stretches, St Mary's Tower at the northwest corner and a polygonal water tower by the river. Excavated finds and architectural features, particularly relating to the warming house and late twelfth-century chapter house, are displayed in the Yorkshire Museum
, housed on the grounds.
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
, once the richest abbey in the north of England, is a ruined Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
abbey that lies in what are now the Yorkshire Museum Gardens, on a steeply sloping site to the west of York Minster
York Minster
York Minster is a Gothic cathedral in York, England and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe alongside Cologne Cathedral. The minster is the seat of the Archbishop of York, the second-highest office of the Church of England, and is the cathedral for the Diocese of York; it is run by...
. The original abbey on the site was founded in 1055 and dedicated to Saint Olave
Olaf II of Norway
Olaf II Haraldsson was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. He was posthumously given the title Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae and canonised in Nidaros by Bishop Grimkell, one year after his death in the Battle of Stiklestad on 29 July 1030. Enshrined in Nidaros Cathedral...
. It was refounded in 1088 for Abbot Stephen and a group of monks from Whitby
Whitby Abbey
Whitby Abbey is a ruined Benedictine abbey overlooking the North Sea on the East Cliff above Whitby in North Yorkshire, England. It was disestablished during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under the auspices of Henry VIII...
by the Anglo-Breton magnate Alan Rufus, who laid the foundation stone of the Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
church that year. The monks moved to York from a site at Lastingham
Lastingham
Lastingham is a village and civil parish which lies in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire, England. It is on the southern fringe of the North York Moors, five miles north east of Kirkbymoorside, one and a half miles to the east of Hutton-le-Hole. It was home to the early missionaries to the...
in Ryedale in the 1080s and are recorded there in Domesday. Following a dispute and riot in 1132, a party of reform-minded monks left to establish the Cistercian monastery of Fountains Abbey
Fountains Abbey
Fountains Abbey is near to Aldfield, approximately two miles southwest of Ripon in North Yorkshire, England. It is a ruined Cistercian monastery, founded in 1132. Fountains Abbey is one of the largest and best preserved Cistercian houses in England. It is a Grade I listed building and owned by the...
. The surviving ruins date from a rebuilding programme begun in 1271 and finished by 1294.
The abbey's walled precincts were extended in the twelfth century, so that by 1266 it was enclosed within a wall nearly three-quarters of a mile long. In 1318 the abbot received royal permission to raise the height of the wall and crenelate it; a stretch of this wall still runs along Bootham
Bootham
Bootham is a district near the centre of the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. It is just outside Bootham Bar, one of the ancient gateways through the city walls of York...
and Marygate to the River Ouse
River Ouse, Yorkshire
The River Ouse is a river in North Yorkshire, England. The river is formed from the River Ure at Cuddy Shaw Reach near Linton-on-Ouse, about 6 miles downstream of the confluence of the River Swale with the River Ure...
.
Apse
In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
liturgical east end, and its side aisles also ended in apses, though they were square on the exterior. Rebuilding began in 1270, under the direction of abbot Simon de Warwick, and was swiftly completed during a single campaign, such was the financial strength of the abbey. This completed the abbey church whose ruins are a prominent feature in Museum Gardens. The Yorkshire Museum, built for the Yorkshire Philosophical Society, stands in part of the abbey cloister; parts of the east, south and west cloister walls were temporarily excavated in 1827-29 preparatory to digging the museum's foundations. Part of the richly carved chapter house
Chapter house
A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room attached to a cathedral or collegiate church in which meetings are held. They can also be found in medieval monasteries....
vestibule (c 1298-1307) survives, incorporated into Tempest Anderson Hall lecture theatre (1911-12).
The gatehouse in Marygate and its lodge formed part of a range of buildings that linked to the older church of St Olave by a chapel dedicated to Mary. Though work on the chapel and gatehouse was under way 1314 and completed in 1320, the surviving structures are mostly of fifteenth-century origin.
The abbot's house
King's Manor
The King's Manor is a Grade I listed building in York, England, and is part of the University of York.King's Manor was originally built to house the abbots of St Mary's Abbey, York. The Abbot's house probably occupied the site since the eleventh century, but the earliest remains date from the...
, built of brick in 1483, survived as the "King's Manor" because it became the seat of the Council of the North
Council of the North
The Council of the North was an administrative body originally set up in 1484 by king Richard III of England, the third and last Yorkist monarch to hold the Crown of England; its intention was to improve government control and economic prosperity, to benefit the entire area of Northern England...
in 1539; the abbots of St Mary's and the abbey featured in the medieval and early modern ballads of Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
, with the abbot usually as Robin Hood's nemesis).
Remains
St Mary's, the largest and richest Benedictine establishment in the north of EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and one of the largest landholders in Yorkshire, was worth £2000 a year, when it was valued in 1539, during the dissolution of the monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
under Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
; it was closed and subsequently substantially destroyed. All that remains today are the north and west walls, plus a few other remnants: the half-timbered Pilgrims' Hospitium
Hospitium
Hospitium , hospitality, among the Greeks and Romans, was of a twofold character: private and public.-Private:In Homeric times all strangers without exception, were regarded as being under the protection of Zeus Xenios, the god of strangers and suppliants...
, the West Gate and the 14th-century timber-framed Abbot's House (now called the King's Manor
King's Manor
The King's Manor is a Grade I listed building in York, England, and is part of the University of York.King's Manor was originally built to house the abbots of St Mary's Abbey, York. The Abbot's house probably occupied the site since the eleventh century, but the earliest remains date from the...
). The walls include interval towers along the north and west stretches, St Mary's Tower at the northwest corner and a polygonal water tower by the river. Excavated finds and architectural features, particularly relating to the warming house and late twelfth-century chapter house, are displayed in the Yorkshire Museum
Yorkshire Museum
The Yorkshire Museum is a museum in York, England. It is the home of the Cawood sword, and has four permanent collections, covering biology, geology, archaeology and astronomy...
, housed on the grounds.