Some Descriptions of Rievaulx Abbey in 1538–9: The Disposition of A Major Cistercian Precinct in the Early Sixteenth Century

The rediscovery of an unpublished Survey of Rievaulx Abbey made for the Earl of Rutland, the first lay owner after the Suppression, and a re-evaluation of three other contemporary documents has enabled the writer to reconstruct in general terms the precinct of a major Cistercian abbey at its final stage of development. In particular, it has been possible to identify many of the buildings of the Outer Court which no longer survive and to establish the general layout of the whole precinct, thus placing the surviving ruins in context. From the evidence of the four documents studied, it would seem that a particularly Cistercian form of precinct development can be identified for the first time.