Monastic Ruins
The remains of Whitby Abbey
The first monastery here, founded in about 657, became one of the most important religious centres in the Anglo-Saxon world. In 664 it was the setting for the Synod of Whitby, a landmark in the history of the Church in England. The headland is now dominated by the shell of the 13th-century church of the Benedictine abbey founded after the Norman Conquest.
In about 1078 a monk called Reinfrid founded a new monastic community at Whitby. At a very early stage in its history this community split and the two parts each developed into a fully fledged Benedictine monastery: one on the headland at Whitby and the other at St Mary’s Abbey, York.
The Benedictine monastery initially probably had timber buildings or reused the Anglian ruins on the headland. About 1100 a stone church and conventual buildings were built in the Romanesque style, as well as a large parish church close by.
In the 13th century the monastery church was rebuilt in the Gothic style. This was a massive undertaking, including major landscaping of the whole site, though there is no documentary evidence for it. The first building campaign is dated on stylistic grounds to about 1225–50. The eastern arm, the crossing and transepts, a central tower, and part of the nave were built before funds seem to have run out.
Work appears to have been resumed on the nave in the 14th century, but it was not finished until the 15th century. The only documentary evidence is a grant of permission for a monk of Whitby to embark on a fundraising campaign in 1338, recorded in the Whitby Cartulary (a compilation of the charters by which the monastery had been given property and legal privileges). The remains of the nave have been loosely dated on the basis of architectural style.
There were doubtless extensive monastic buildings south of the abbey church, but they were almost completely demolished after the abbey’s suppression in 1539.
After the Suppression Sir Richard Cholmley (d.1578) bought the abbey’s buildings and the core of its estates. The Cholmley family adapted part of the abbot's lodgings into a house.
This was only one of the Cholmleys’ residences. Originally from Cheshire, they had already become major landowners in Yorkshire. Sir Hugh Cholmley I (1600–57) played a notable part in the Civil War (1642–51), defending Scarborough Castle for the king before surrendering it in 1645, after which Parliamentarian troops captured and looted the Abbey House at Whitby.
After the war Sir Hugh Cholmley II (1632–89) did much to restore the family estates and added a grand new wing (c 1672), known locally as the Banqueting House, to the Abbey House. He laid out a new entrance courtyard to provide a formal approach and setting.
In the 18th century the Cholmleys moved away, abandoning the Abbey House. The roof of the 1670s wing is said to have been removed after storm damage in the late 18th century.
The shell of the abbey church was substantially complete until the 18th century. It was weakened, however, by erosion from wind and rain. The south transept collapsed in 1736, much of the nave in 1763, the central tower in 1830 and the south side of the presbytery in 1839.
From the early 19th century Whitby became a popular seaside resort, with new terraces laid out on the West Cliff. The abbey ruins became a tourist destination, and rising interest in the site was recorded in numerous engravings and paintings. The publication of Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula in 1897 gave Whitby a major literary association, ensuring that the sinister count would forever be associated with the town.
Ownership of the abbey ruins passed to the Strickland family, who were descendants of the Cholmleys. About 1880 Charles (later Sir Charles) Strickland added a wing to the surviving part of the Abbey House, to adapt it for occasional use as a holiday residence.
In 1914 the German High Seas Fleet shelled Whitby and struck the abbey ruins, causing considerable damage to the west front, though this was later repaired. In 1920 the Strickland family handed the abbey over to the Ministry of Works, and over the following decade Sir Charles Peers directed major excavations at the site, uncovering evidence of the Anglian settlement here.
[English Heritage]
Whitby, North Yorkshire
Monastic Ruins
The remains of Whitby Abbey
The first monastery here, founded in about 657, became one of the most important religious centres in the Anglo-Saxon world. In 664 it was the setting for the Synod of Whitby, a landmark in the history of the Church in England. The headland is now dominated by the shell of the 13th-century church of the Benedictine abbey founded after the Norman Conquest.
In about 1078 a monk called Reinfrid founded a new monastic community at Whitby. At a very early stage in its history this community split and the two parts each developed into a fully fledged Benedictine monastery: one on the headland at Whitby and the other at St Mary’s Abbey, York.
The Benedictine monastery initially probably had timber buildings or reused the Anglian ruins on the headland. About 1100 a stone church and conventual buildings were built in the Romanesque style, as well as a large parish church close by.
In the 13th century the monastery church was rebuilt in the Gothic style. This was a massive undertaking, including major landscaping of the whole site, though there is no documentary evidence for it. The first building campaign is dated on stylistic grounds to about 1225–50. The eastern arm, the crossing and transepts, a central tower, and part of the nave were built before funds seem to have run out.
Work appears to have been resumed on the nave in the 14th century, but it was not finished until the 15th century. The only documentary evidence is a grant of permission for a monk of Whitby to embark on a fundraising campaign in 1338, recorded in the Whitby Cartulary (a compilation of the charters by which the monastery had been given property and legal privileges). The remains of the nave have been loosely dated on the basis of architectural style.
There were doubtless extensive monastic buildings south of the abbey church, but they were almost completely demolished after the abbey’s suppression in 1539.
After the Suppression Sir Richard Cholmley (d.1578) bought the abbey’s buildings and the core of its estates. The Cholmley family adapted part of the abbot's lodgings into a house.
This was only one of the Cholmleys’ residences. Originally from Cheshire, they had already become major landowners in Yorkshire. Sir Hugh Cholmley I (1600–57) played a notable part in the Civil War (1642–51), defending Scarborough Castle for the king before surrendering it in 1645, after which Parliamentarian troops captured and looted the Abbey House at Whitby.
After the war Sir Hugh Cholmley II (1632–89) did much to restore the family estates and added a grand new wing (c 1672), known locally as the Banqueting House, to the Abbey House. He laid out a new entrance courtyard to provide a formal approach and setting.
In the 18th century the Cholmleys moved away, abandoning the Abbey House. The roof of the 1670s wing is said to have been removed after storm damage in the late 18th century.
The shell of the abbey church was substantially complete until the 18th century. It was weakened, however, by erosion from wind and rain. The south transept collapsed in 1736, much of the nave in 1763, the central tower in 1830 and the south side of the presbytery in 1839.
From the early 19th century Whitby became a popular seaside resort, with new terraces laid out on the West Cliff. The abbey ruins became a tourist destination, and rising interest in the site was recorded in numerous engravings and paintings. The publication of Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula in 1897 gave Whitby a major literary association, ensuring that the sinister count would forever be associated with the town.
Ownership of the abbey ruins passed to the Strickland family, who were descendants of the Cholmleys. About 1880 Charles (later Sir Charles) Strickland added a wing to the surviving part of the Abbey House, to adapt it for occasional use as a holiday residence.
In 1914 the German High Seas Fleet shelled Whitby and struck the abbey ruins, causing considerable damage to the west front, though this was later repaired. In 1920 the Strickland family handed the abbey over to the Ministry of Works, and over the following decade Sir Charles Peers directed major excavations at the site, uncovering evidence of the Anglian settlement here.
[English Heritage]
Whitby, North Yorkshire