The Buildings of St Mary's Abbey, York and Their Destruction

Abstract

St Mary's Abbey, York was one of the richest Benedictine monasteries in the country and its buildings reflected its wealth and status. The quality of its architectural remains is of the highest order, and the collection of medieval sculpture from the site is outstanding. Indeed, the set of life-size column-figures brought to light in 1829 must count as one of the most exciting discoveries ever made in the field of the history of sculpture in this country. Nor is the later history of the site any less interesting. At the Dissolution it became the seat of the King's Council in the North and acquired the name of King's Manor, which part of the complex retains to this day. The principal monastic buildings came down within a few years, and their demolition can be followed in considerable detail, as we shall see; but the centuries of Crown ownership prevented the division of the property until the nineteenth century, and it remains one of the best-preserved urban (albeit extra-mural) monastic precincts in Britain.