Soham Abbey

Soham Abbey was an Anglo-Saxon monastery in Soham, a small town in Cambridgeshire. It was founded in the early 7th century by St Felix of Burgundy, who was the first bishop of East Anglia. Felix built the abbey as part of his efforts to spread Christianity in the region. At the time, Soham was part of the Kingdom of East Anglia. The abbey played a significant role in early English Christianity. After Felix’s death in 647, his remains were moved to Soham Abbey to protect them from Danish raiders. The Danes destroyed the abbey in 870, and Felix’s remains were later taken to Ramsey Abbey. In 1189, Richard I gave the parish church to a Cistercian abbey in France, which later leased the estate to another Cistercian monastery in Oxfordshire. The current church in Soham, dedicated to St Andrew, stands on the same site as the old abbey. The abbey’s layout is still visible today through a moat that once surrounded the complex. The moat traces a circular path through parts of the town, including Station Road and Paddock Street. The remains of the abbey’s round tower and transept can still be seen in the church’s architecture.