Studley Royal Park Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Studley Royal Park
UNESCO World Heritage Site
The Park, a World Heritage Site
Location	North Yorkshire, England
Criteria	Cultural: i, iv
Inscription	1986 (10th Session)

Studley Royal Park is a special place in North Yorkshire, England. It includes the amazing ruins of Fountains Abbey. This whole area is so important that UNESCO has named it a World Heritage Site.

The park covers a huge area, about 323 hectares (800 acres). It features a beautiful garden from the 1700s. You can also see some of the biggest ruins of a Cistercian monastery in Europe. Plus, there's an old house from the Jacobean period and a church from the Victorian era. The famous architect William Burges designed the church.

Discovering the History of Studley Royal Park
Images for kids
See also

Discovering the History of Studley Royal Park

The Story of Fountains Abbey

The beautiful Water Garden at Studley Royal Park.

Fountains Abbey was started in 1132 by a group of monks. These monks were part of the Benedictine order. They left another abbey in York to follow a stricter way of life called the Cistercian order.

In 1539, King Henry VIII decided to close down all the monasteries in England. This event is known as the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The Abbey buildings and over 500 acres of land were then sold. A merchant named Sir Richard Gresham bought them.

The property stayed in Sir Gresham's family for many years. Later, between 1598 and 1604, it was sold to Stephen Proctor. He built a house called Fountains Hall. This house was partly made using stones from the Abbey ruins.

The Fountains Abbey mill is very old. It is the only Cistercian corn mill from the 1100s still standing in the UK. It's the oldest building on the estate that is still mostly complete.

The Studley Estate and Its Owners

The Studley Royal estate has a long history. From 1452, the Mallory family lived there. Important members included John Mallory and William Mallory, who were both Members of Parliament.

In 1693, John Aislabie took over the Studley estate from his older brother. He was very important in shaping the park we see today.

The Grand Studley Royal House

Studley Royal House, also called Studley Hall, was once a large house in the park. It started as a medieval manor house. It had a main part with wings sticking out.

Sadly, the house burned down in 1716. John Aislabie rebuilt it. But then, in 1946, it was destroyed by fire again. A large stable building, built between 1728 and 1732, survived. Today, this stable block is a private home.

Recent Times at Studley Royal

In 1966, the local government, West Riding County Council, bought the estate. Then, in 1983, the National Trust took over. The National Trust is a charity that protects historic places and natural beauty.

The area around Fountains Abbey is managed by English Heritage. They work with the National Trust to look after it.

In 1986, UNESCO officially named the entire park a World Heritage Site. They called it "a masterpiece of human creative genius." This means it's a truly special place created by people. They also said it shows "significant stages in human history."

Since 1994, the estate has been part of the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. This shows how important its natural beauty is.