Lacock Abbey monastery

Lacock Abbey began as a monastery in the early 13th century when Ela, Countess of Salisbury, founded a house for Augustinian canonesses regular. The site lies on Snail’s Meadow between the village of Lacock and the River Avon in Wiltshire. Ela laid the first stone in 1232 after securing royal and papal approval, and the first nuns were veiled that same year. The abbey followed the Rule of St Augustine, making it one of England’s few Augustinian nunneries. Ela later became its first abbess, ruling until 1257 before resigning in favour of Beatrice of Kent. The abbey grew through gifts from Ela’s family and royal grants of land and timber. Henry III donated oaks from Chippenham Forest and money for building works, while Edward I supplied more timber later. The nuns managed farms, mills and a coal mine, running a flock of over 2,000 sheep at Chitterne. By the 16th century the house owned manors across Wiltshire and Gloucestershire. Commissioners reported in 1535 and 1536 that the buildings were well kept and financially sound. Visitors today walk through the remains of the abbey church and cloister, still showing the layout of a medieval nunnery. The site includes the abbess’s lodging and a lady-chapel added in the 14th century. Later alterations turned the monastery into a country house, where Henry Fox Talbot made early photographic experiments. The ruins stand beside Lacock village, where the River Avon winds through water meadows once part of the abbey’s estate.