Rievaulx Abbey
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Overview
A short drive or stroll from Helmsley is one of Yorkshire’s finest treasures. Today the setting of Rievaulx Abbey is sheltered and inviting, but when Walter l’Espec dispatched a group of French monks to find a suitable site on which to build a new community it was reported to be fit only for ‘wild beasts and robbers’. At that time there were no roads in the area; instead of neat copses and lush meadows there were only impenetrable thickets. To the devoutly ascetic Cistercian monks, this part of the Rye Valley represented the sort of challenge on which they thrived. In 1131, the monks began to build the mother church of the Cistercian order in England – and it’s still one of the finest abbeys in the country. The nave is Norman, but the rest of the buildings reflect the Early English style. The monks may have started out with a strictly ascetic attitude towards wealth and lifestyle – indeed the establishment of the Cistercian order was partly due to what they considered to be the wicked corruption of the Benedictine orders, but the monks and lay brothers of Rievaulx Abbey succeeded in creating wealth and influence. The monks farmed sheep, cultivated vegetables, ground corn and smelted iron – a process that required the felling of perhaps 40 trees to make a hundred-weight of metal. They even built canals to enable the iron to be transported. Stone for the buildings was brought to the site from local quarries by the same method. By 1538, when Henry VIII destroyed their way of life for ever at the Dissolution, the monks had become very wealthy indeed.
Features
- Opening Times
- Open all year
- Opening Times: Open Apr-Sep, daily 10-6; Oct-3 Nov, daily 10-5; 4 Nov-23 Dec & Jan-11 Feb, Sat-Sun 10-4; 27-31 Dec, daily 10-4; 12-18 Feb, daily 10-4; 19 Feb-Mar, Wed-Sun 10-4. Closed 24-26 Dec, 1 Jan
- Facilities
- Parking onsite
- Cafe
About the area
North Yorkshire, with its two National Parks and two designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, is England’s largest county and one of the most rural. This is prime walking country, from the heather-clad heights of the North York Moors to the limestone country that is so typical of the Yorkshire Dales – a place of contrasts and discoveries, of history and legend.
Places to eat nearby View all
Nearby places to stay
View all (8)
Nearby places to stay
Refectory Lodge
Refectory Cottage s a two-bedroom holiday cottage that comfortably sleeps four people. The cottage is sat within the grounds of Rievaulx Abbey amidst the rolling North Yorkshire country...
Pignut and The Hare
Dating back to the 12th century, this charming former village pub is full of character and is located in the unspoilt setting of Scawton. Four stunning bedrooms make the most of the sto...
5 Elmslac Road
Ivy Cottage is a fully furnished Yorkshire stone cottage, in Helmsley in the North York Moors, 5 minutes’ walk from the town centre. It sleeps 5 and comprises lounge, dining- room, thre...
Ivy Cottage
Ivy Cottage is a fully furnished Yorkshire stone cottage, in Helmsley in the North York Moors, 5 minutes’ walk from the town centre. It sleeps 5 and comprises lounge, dining- room, thre...
The Feathers
The Feathers enjoys a prominent position overlooking the bustling town square in the picturesque market town of Helmsley. The bar and lounge areas are full of character and real fires g...
Tykes Cottage
Superbly equipped modern Mews cottage, set in a quiet location, just a short stroll from the Marketplace in Helmsley with all its interesting shops, cafes, pubs and bistros. Walks from ...
Tykes Cottage
Superbly equipped modern Mews cottage, set in a quiet location, just a short stroll from the Marketplace in Helmsley with all its interesting shops, cafes, pubs and bistros. Walks from ...
Holly-Garth
Holly-Garth is an individual and superbly equipped holiday cottage near the centre of Helmsley, on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors. Holly-Garth sleeps eight in four first floor be...
