Holmcultram Abbey (alternatively Holm Cultram Abbey or Holme Cultram Abbey) was a Cistercian

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whi ...

in what is now the village of

Abbeytown Abbeytown, also known as Holme Abbey, is a village and civil parish in the Allerdale borough of Cumbria, England. The name Abbeytown dates to the mid-17th century (''The Towne of the Abbey'', ''Abbey Towne''; ''Abbeytown'' from mid-18th centur ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. C ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Founded in 1150, the abbey was suppressed in 1538 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The former monastic church remains in use as a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

and a place of worship.

Foundation and Scots connections

The abbey was founded in 1150 by Cistercian monks from

Melrose Abbey St Mary's Abbey, Melrose is a partly ruined monastery of the Cistercian order in Melrose, Roxburghshire, in the Scottish Borders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of King David I of Scotland and was the chief house of th ...

on land given by Alan of Allerdale. In territory formerly held by

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

, the land was granted by Prince Henry and the building was made of stone from north of the

Solway Firth The Solway Firth ( gd, Tràchd Romhra) is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria (including the Solway Plain) and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven ...

. The area was later regained by

Henry II of England Henry II (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189), also known as Henry Curtmantle (french: link=no, Court-manteau), Henry FitzEmpress, or Henry Plantagenet, was King of England from 1154 until his death in 1189, and as such, was the first Angevin king ...

who confirmed the grant of land in 1157. The abbey rented land in

Galloway Galloway ( ; sco, Gallowa; la, Gallovidia) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway. A native or ...

and held it for 200 years, disposing of it when it became no longer possible for Englishmen to hold land in Scotland.

History

The abbey steadily became prosperous, acquiring lands in north Cumberland and undertaking reclamation work along the Solway. In 1301 it was granted a market at

Skinburness Skinburness is a village in the Allerdale district of Cumbria (historically Cumberland), England. It forms a residential area for the town of Silloth, and is about 10 miles west of Wigton. The Skinburness Hotel was the most prominent building ...

, together with permission to build a church. Following violent storms which devastated Skinburness, both permissions were transferred to Newton Arlosh, where the abbey built a heavily fortified chapel of ease. Experience had shown that the abbey's Scots origins did not protect it from attacks by Scots raiders, from whom it suffered repeatedly from 1216 onwards, with a particularly severe attack in 1319, by

Robert the Bruce Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (Scottish Gaelic: ''Raibeart an Bruis''), was King of Scots from 1306 to his death in 1329. One of the most renowned warriors of his generation, Robert eventual ...

, despite his father being buried there. The community established a daughter house at Grey Abbey in County Down in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

in 1193.

Dissolution

This former Cumberland monastic community was dissolved in 1538, when the parish petitioned for, and obtained, the use of the

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

; the

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

became the first

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

Buildings

The buildings are constructed of

red sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) b ...

from the other side of the Solway. Archaeological excavations from 2006 onwards have shown that the monastic buildings extended to the south of the church, and followed the usual Cistercian pattern. The church was along the north side of the cloister, with other buildings on the other three sides, the refectory being opposite the church and the chapter house to the west. The former abbey church underwent a series of structural accidents (such as the collapse of the tower in 1600) and alterations as a result of which it gradually shrank to comprise the first six bays of the nave, without aisles. In addition the roof was lowered to the height of a single storey and there were two energetic restorations in 1883 and 1913. This nevertheless left a large enough building to continue to serve to the present day as the parish church of Abbeytown.

Fire and restoration

The church was severely damaged by arson on 9 June 2006, when original records of the monastery, including the

cartulary A cartulary or chartulary (; Latin: ''cartularium'' or ''chartularium''), also called ''pancarta'' or ''codex diplomaticus'', is a medieval manuscript volume or roll (''rotulus'') containing transcriptions of original documents relating to the fo ...

, were destroyed. It took over nine years to complete repair work to the abbey, but it was eventually fully restored and reopened to the public in September 2015. From the time of the arson attack until the reopening, parishioners worshipped in one of the side rooms which had been left undamaged. Also in September 2015, a further archaeological dig was being conducted in the grounds. File:Holme cultram abbey 2017.jpg, Church after restoration looking east File:Holme abbey looking west.jpg, Church looking west with restoration work ongoing File:Holme abbey north transept window.jpg, New window in restored north transept File:Holme abbey east window.jpg, East window

Burials

* Christian of Whithorn * Robert de Brus, 6th Lord of Annandale

Sources

* New, Anthony, 1985: ''A Guide to the Abbeys of England and Wales''. London: Constable * Robinson, David (ed.), 2002: ''The Cistercian Abbeys of Britain''. London: B.T. Batsford

References

External links

Pictures of the church before and after the fire

British History Online: the Register and Records of Holme Cultram

{{Coord, 54.8454, -3.2829, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Monasteries in Cumbria Cistercian monasteries in England 1538 disestablishments in England 1150 establishments in England Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Religious buildings and structures in the United Kingdom destroyed by arson Burial sites of the House of Bruce