Valle Crucis Abbey
Encyclopedia
Valle Crucis Abbey is a Cistercian abbey located in Llantysilio
in Denbighshire
, Wales
. More formally the Abbey Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Valle Crucis it is known in Welsh both as Abaty Glyn Egwestl and Abaty Glyn y Groes.
The abbey was built in 1201 by Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor
, Prince of Powys Fadog
. Valle Crucis was dissolved in 1537 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries
, and subsequently fell into serious disrepair. The building is now a ruin, though large parts of the original structure still survive. Valle Crucis Abbey is now under the care of Cadw
.
, on the site of a temporary wooden church and was the last Cistercian monastery to be built in Wales. Originally founded in the principality of Powys Fadog
, Valle Crucis was the spiritual centre of the region, while Dinas Bran
was the political stronghold. The abbey took its name from the nearby Pillar of Eliseg
, which was erected four centuries earlier by Cyngen ap Cadell
, King of Powys in memory of his great-grandfather, Elisedd ap Gwylog
.
Madog was buried in the then-completed abbey upon his death in 1236. His heraldic slab was excavated from the site in 1956. Not long after Madog's death, it is believed that a serious fire badly damaged the abbey, with archaeological evidence that the church and south range were effected.
The location on which Valle Crucis was raised was originally established as a colony of twelve monks from Strata Marcella
, an earlier abbey located on the western bank of the River Severn
near Welshpool
. The original wooden structure was replaced with stone structures of roughly faced rubble. The completed abbey is believed to have housed about sixty brethren, 20 choir monks and 40 lay-members who would have carried out the day-to-day duties including agricultural work. The numbers within the church fluctuated throughout its history and the monks and the abbey itself came under threat from various political and religious events. The abbey is believed to been involved in the Welsh Wars of Edward I of England
during the 13th century, and was supposedly damaged in the uprising
led by Owain Glyndŵr
. Numbers also fell after the Black Death
ravaged Britain.
The fortunes of Valle Crucis improved during the 15th century, and the abbey gained a reputation as a place of hospitality. Several important Welsh poets of the period spent time at the abbey including Gutun Owain
, Tudur Aled
and Guto'r Glyn
. Guto'r Glyn spent the last few years of his life at the abbey, and was buried at the site in 1493.
In 1537, Valle Crucis was dissolved, as it was deemed not prosperous compared to the more wealthy English abbeys. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries
, the site fell into disrepair, and the building was given to Sir William Puckering on a 21 year lease by Henry VIII
. The lease was renewed under the reign of Henry's son Edward VI
in 1551, but after Sir William's death in 1574, the property was passed to his daughter, Hestor. In 1575 Hestor married Edward Wotton, 1st Baron Wotton
, and the lease was extended to Baron Wotton in 1583 by Elizabeth I
. By the late 16th century the eastern range was converted into a manor house. Valle Crucis remained with the Wotton family, and was inherited by the 2nd Baron Wotton
, but upon his death it was passed to Hestor Wotton, his third daughter. Hestor married Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden
and the abbey entered the family's ownership, before being sold shortly afterwards when the estate was sequestered by Parliament in 1651. By the late 18th century the building that remained were re-roofed and the site was used as a farm, before excavations were undertaken in the later half of the 19th century. The site is now cared for by Cadw, and is an open visitor attraction.
Valle Crucis Abbey consisted of the church plus several adjoining out buildings which enclosed a square courtyard. The church itself ran West to East in the traditional cruciform style, today much of the original church is ruined, though the west end front wall survives, including the masonry of the rose window
. The outbuildings including the adjoining east range, which survives mainly intact and the west range, which housed the lay brethren’s frater
, but is now demolished. Completing the four sides of the inner courtyard was the southern frater and kitchen, which faced the church; these two building are also now ruins, with only foundation stones remaining. The east and west ranges housed the cloisters, with the east range also leading to the final structure, the abbot's lodgings which settled between the range and the church but outside the courtyard. The site is also home to the only remaining monastic fishpond in Wales, but suffered from being remodelled as a reflecting pool in the 18th century.
As well as the west end front wall, extensive parts of the east end of the structures survive to the present day. The chancel
walls, the southern part of the transept
, the east range of the cloister together with the chapter house
and sacristy
and the lower part of the reredorter
all survive mainly intact. In 1870 the west end wall was restored by George Gilbert Scott
.
Llantysilio
Llantysilio is a community in the Welsh county of Denbighshire. It has a population of 472.The community includes the site of Valle Crucis Abbey and the Horseshoe Pass; it also includes the villages of Pentredwr and Rhewl, as well as the areas of Eglwyseg, Llandynan, and Llidiart Annie....
in Denbighshire
Denbighshire
Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. More formally the Abbey Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Valle Crucis it is known in Welsh both as Abaty Glyn Egwestl and Abaty Glyn y Groes.
The abbey was built in 1201 by Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor
Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor
Madog ap Gruffudd or Madog ap Gruffudd Maelor, was Prince of Powys Fadog 1191-1236 in north-east Wales.- Lineage :He was elder son of Gruffydd Maelor and his wife, Angharad a daughter of Owain Gwynedd.- Sole Ruler :...
, Prince of Powys Fadog
Powys Fadog
Powys Fadog or Lower Powys was the northern portion of the former princely realm of Powys which split in two following the death of Madog ap Maredudd of Powys in 1160...
. Valle Crucis was dissolved in 1537 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...
, and subsequently fell into serious disrepair. The building is now a ruin, though large parts of the original structure still survive. Valle Crucis Abbey is now under the care of Cadw
Cadw
-Conservation and Protection:Many of Wales's great castles and other monuments, such as bishop's palaces, historic houses, and ruined abbeys, are now in Cadw's care. Cadw does not own them but is responsible for their upkeep and for making them accessible to the public...
.
History
Valle Crucis Abbey was founded in 1201 by Madog ap Gruffydd MaelorMadog ap Gruffydd Maelor
Madog ap Gruffudd or Madog ap Gruffudd Maelor, was Prince of Powys Fadog 1191-1236 in north-east Wales.- Lineage :He was elder son of Gruffydd Maelor and his wife, Angharad a daughter of Owain Gwynedd.- Sole Ruler :...
, on the site of a temporary wooden church and was the last Cistercian monastery to be built in Wales. Originally founded in the principality of Powys Fadog
Powys Fadog
Powys Fadog or Lower Powys was the northern portion of the former princely realm of Powys which split in two following the death of Madog ap Maredudd of Powys in 1160...
, Valle Crucis was the spiritual centre of the region, while Dinas Bran
Castell Dinas Bran
Castell Dinas Brân is a medieval castle standing high on a hill above the town of Llangollen in Denbighshire, Wales. It is also the site of an Iron Age hill fort.-Early history:...
was the political stronghold. The abbey took its name from the nearby Pillar of Eliseg
Pillar of Eliseg
The Pillar of Eliseg also known as Elise's Pillar or Croes Elisedd in Welsh, stands near Valle Crucis Abbey, Denbighshire, Wales, at . It was erected by Cyngen ap Cadell , king of Powys in honour of his great-grandfather Elisedd ap Gwylog...
, which was erected four centuries earlier by Cyngen ap Cadell
Cyngen ap Cadell
Cyngen ap Cadell was a king of Powys in eastern Wales.-Biography:Cyngen was of the line of Brochwel Ysgithrog and after a long reign as king of Powys went on a pilgrimage to Rome and died there in 855...
, King of Powys in memory of his great-grandfather, Elisedd ap Gwylog
Elisedd ap Gwylog
Elisedd ap Gwylog , also known as Elise, was king of Powys in eastern Wales.Little has been preserved in the historical records about Elisedd, who was a descendant of Brochwel Ysgithrog. He appears to have reclaimed the territory of Powys after it had been overrun by the English...
.
Madog was buried in the then-completed abbey upon his death in 1236. His heraldic slab was excavated from the site in 1956. Not long after Madog's death, it is believed that a serious fire badly damaged the abbey, with archaeological evidence that the church and south range were effected.
The location on which Valle Crucis was raised was originally established as a colony of twelve monks from Strata Marcella
Strata Marcella
The Abbey of Strata Marcella , was a medieval Cistercian monastery situated at Ystrad Marchell on the west bank of the River Severn near Welshpool, Powys, Wales.- Founding :...
, an earlier abbey located on the western bank of the River Severn
River Severn
The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...
near Welshpool
Welshpool
Welshpool is a town in Powys, Wales, or ancient county Montgomeryshire, from the Wales-England border. The town is low-lying on the River Severn; the Welsh language name Y Trallwng literally meaning 'the marshy or sinking land'...
. The original wooden structure was replaced with stone structures of roughly faced rubble. The completed abbey is believed to have housed about sixty brethren, 20 choir monks and 40 lay-members who would have carried out the day-to-day duties including agricultural work. The numbers within the church fluctuated throughout its history and the monks and the abbey itself came under threat from various political and religious events. The abbey is believed to been involved in the Welsh Wars of Edward I of England
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
during the 13th century, and was supposedly damaged in the uprising
Glyndwr Rising
The Glyndŵr Rising, Welsh Revolt or Last War of Independence was an uprising of the Welsh, led by Owain Glyndŵr, against England. It was the last major manifestation of a Welsh independence movement before the incorporation of Wales into England by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542.- The Fall of...
led by Owain Glyndŵr
Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndŵr , or Owain Glyn Dŵr, anglicised by William Shakespeare as Owen Glendower , was a Welsh ruler and the last native Welshman to hold the title Prince of Wales...
. Numbers also fell after the Black Death
Black Death
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
ravaged Britain.
Gutun Owain
Gutun Owain was a Welsh language poet. Gutun Owain was born near Oswestry in what is now north Shropshire and was a student of Dafydd ab Edmwnd....
, Tudur Aled
Tudur Aled
Tudur Aled was a late medieval Welsh poet, born in Llansannan, Denbighshire.He is regarded as one of the finest poets of his period and was a master of cynghanedd....
and Guto'r Glyn
Guto'r Glyn
Guto'r Glyn was a Welsh language poet and soldier of the era of the Beirdd yr Uchelwyr or Cywyddwyr , the itinerant professional poets of the later Middle Ages...
. Guto'r Glyn spent the last few years of his life at the abbey, and was buried at the site in 1493.
In 1537, Valle Crucis was dissolved, as it was deemed not prosperous compared to the more wealthy English abbeys. After 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...
, the site fell into disrepair, and the building was given to Sir William Puckering on a 21 year lease by 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...
. The lease was renewed under the reign of Henry's son Edward VI
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
in 1551, but after Sir William's death in 1574, the property was passed to his daughter, Hestor. In 1575 Hestor married Edward Wotton, 1st Baron Wotton
Edward Wotton, 1st Baron Wotton
Edward Wotton, 1st Baron Wotton was an English diplomat and administrator.From 1612 to 1613, he served as a Lord of the Treasury...
, and the lease was extended to Baron Wotton in 1583 by Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
. By the late 16th century the eastern range was converted into a manor house. Valle Crucis remained with the Wotton family, and was inherited by the 2nd Baron Wotton
Thomas Wotton, 2nd Baron Wotton
Thomas Wotton, 2nd Baron Wotton was an English peer.Wotton was the eldest son and heir of Edward Wotton, 1st Baron Wotton, and inherited his father's title in 1626...
, but upon his death it was passed to Hestor Wotton, his third daughter. Hestor married Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden
Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden
Sir Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden was an English politician. He was Lord Lieutenant of Rutland, Custos Rotulorum of Rutland and the Member of Parliament for Rutland....
and the abbey entered the family's ownership, before being sold shortly afterwards when the estate was sequestered by Parliament in 1651. By the late 18th century the building that remained were re-roofed and the site was used as a farm, before excavations were undertaken in the later half of the 19th century. The site is now cared for by Cadw, and is an open visitor attraction.
Architectural layout
Rose window
A Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in churches of the Gothic architectural style and being divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery...
. The outbuildings including the adjoining east range, which survives mainly intact and the west range, which housed the lay brethren’s frater
Refectory
A refectory is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries...
, but is now demolished. Completing the four sides of the inner courtyard was the southern frater and kitchen, which faced the church; these two building are also now ruins, with only foundation stones remaining. The east and west ranges housed the cloisters, with the east range also leading to the final structure, the abbot's lodgings which settled between the range and the church but outside the courtyard. The site is also home to the only remaining monastic fishpond in Wales, but suffered from being remodelled as a reflecting pool in the 18th century.
As well as the west end front wall, extensive parts of the east end of the structures survive to the present day. The chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
walls, the southern part of the transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
, the east range of the cloister together with the 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....
and sacristy
Sacristy
A sacristy is a room for keeping vestments and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.The sacristy is usually located inside the church, but in some cases it is an annex or separate building...
and the lower part of the reredorter
Reredorter
The reredorter was a communal toilet found in mediaeval monasteries in Western Europe and later also in some New World monasteries. It was normally attached to the south end or the east side of the monks' dormitory on the east of the main cloister with seats arranged on the first floor of the...
all survive mainly intact. In 1870 the west end wall was restored by George Gilbert Scott
George Gilbert Scott
Sir George Gilbert Scott was an English architect of the Victorian Age, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches, cathedrals and workhouses...
.