Fountains Abbey Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Fountains Abbey
Fountains Cistercian Abbey: River Skell, Tower & Chapel of Altars
Location	Aldfield, North Yorkshire, England
Built	1132
Governing body	National Trust

UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name: Studley Royal Park including the Ruins of Fountains Abbey
Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, iv
Designated	1986 (10th session)
Reference no.	372
Country	United Kingdom
Region	Europe and North America


Listed Building – Grade I
Official name: Fountains Abbey, with Ancillary Buildings
Designated	11 June 1986
Reference no.	1149811

Fountains Abbey is a very old and well-preserved ruined Cistercian monastery in England. It's located about 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Ripon in North Yorkshire. The abbey was started in 1132 and was active for 407 years.

It became one of the richest monasteries in England. But in 1539, Henry VIII ordered it to be closed down. Today, Fountains Abbey is a Grade I listed building, which means it's a very important historic site. It is owned by the National Trust. It is also part of Studley Royal Park and is recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

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How Fountains Abbey Started

In 1132, there was a disagreement at a Benedictine monastery. Thirteen monks were asked to leave. One of them was Saint Robert of Newminster.

Thurstan, who was the Archbishop of York, helped these monks. He gave them land in the valley of the River Skell. This river is a small branch of the Ure. The valley was a great place for a monastery. It offered protection from bad weather and had plenty of stone and wood for building. There was also a good supply of fresh water.

After a very cold winter in 1133, the monks decided to join the Cistercian order. This was a new and growing religious movement at the time. By the early 1200s, the Cistercians had over 500 monasteries. In 1135, Fountains Abbey became the second Cistercian monastery in northern England, after Rievaulx.

The monks at Fountains Abbey followed the rules of Clairvaux Abbey in France. This abbey was led by St Bernard. A monk named Geoffrey of Ainai came from Clairvaux to teach the Fountains monks. He showed them how to perform their daily prayers and how to build wooden buildings in the Cistercian style.

The Abbey's Architecture

Interior of the abbey church looking down the nave

The area around the abbey covers about 70 acres (28 hectares). It was once surrounded by an 11-foot (3.4 m) high wall built in the 1200s. You can still see parts of this wall today.

The abbey grounds are divided into three main areas, with the River Skell flowing through them. The church and its main buildings are in the center, north of the river. Closer to the river are the monks' living quarters. Further out are buildings used for farming and other work.

The first abbey church was made of wood and probably had two floors. But it was quickly replaced with a stone building. The church was damaged in an attack in 1146. It was then rebuilt even larger on the same spot. This new stone church was finished around 1170. It was about 300 feet (91 m) long and had 11 sections along its sides.

View of Fountains Abbey looking from west to south.

The abbot's house was one of the biggest in all of England. It was located east of the latrine block. Parts of it were built on arches over the River Skell. It started as a small, one-story building in the mid-1100s. Over time, it was made much bigger and grander. By the 1500s, it had beautiful bay windows and large fireplaces. The main hall was a huge room, about 52 by 21 meters (171 by 69 feet).

The abbey also had other important rooms. These included a private chapel, about 46.5 by 23 feet (14.2 by 7.0 m), and a large kitchen, about 50 by 38 feet (15 by 12 m).

Ground plan of Fountains Abbey

Becoming a World Heritage Site

People started digging up the abbey ruins to learn more about them in 1846. This work was led by John Richard Walbran. He wrote a paper about how important it was to clear out the abbey church.

In 1966, the government took over the care of the abbey. The land was bought by the West Riding County Council. Later, in 1974, it was transferred to the North Yorkshire County Council.

The National Trust bought the Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal estate in 1983. This estate covers about 674 acres (273 hectares). In 1986, the park where the abbey stands was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

It was recognized as a "masterpiece of human creative genius." It was also described as a great example of a building or landscape that shows important stages in human history.

Today, Fountains Abbey is owned by the National Trust. It is looked after by English Heritage. The National Trust also owns Studley Royal Park, Fountains Hall, and St Mary's Church. St Mary's Church was designed by William Burges and built around 1873. All these places are important parts of the World Heritage Site.

In 2010, Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal were among the first National Trust sites to be shown on Google Street View. They used a special camera system called the Google Trike.

Fountains Abbey in Movies and TV

Fountains Abbey has been a popular place for filming movies and TV shows.

In December 1981, the band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark filmed their music video for "Maid of Orleans (The Waltz Joan of Arc)" here.
In 1980, Hollywood filmed the final scenes of the movie Omen III: The Final Conflict at the abbey.
Other movies filmed here include: Life at the Top, The Secret Garden, and The History Boys.
Television series like Flambards, A History of Britain, Terry Jones' Medieval Lives, Cathedral, and Antiques Roadshow have also used the abbey as a location.
Game shows like Treasure Hunt were filmed here.
The BBC Television series Gunpowder (2017) also used Fountains Abbey for filming.

Fountains Abbey in Books

Fountains Abbey was mentioned twice in Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Books. These books included poems by Letitia Elizabeth Landon that were inspired by the abbey.