Tintern Abbey has been on my must see list since I first viewed it in one of our many guide books back in December. Each time we have chosen to visit something has popped up from it not being open to the weather inevitably closing in. Today was to be the day and I was not to be disappointed.
Tintern Abbey was founded in 1131 by the Anglo-Norman lord of Chepstow, Walter fitz Richard de Clare. He granted land to a small group of monks from the Cistercian abbey of l’Aumône in France. The position of Tintern Abbey is typical of the remote sites chosen for their monasteries by the Cistercians. The superb Gothic church that still stands, though in ruins, was begun in 1269. It was consecrated in 1301, almost certainly in the presence of Roger Bigod, fifth earl of Norfolk, who supported the abbey.
Tintern continued to grow through the later Middle Ages despite the effects of the Black Death, a great plague that struck Britain in 1348, and the uprising of Owain Glyn Dŵr against Wales's English rulers between 1400 and 1415. Further small-scale building projects were carried out up until the reign of King Henry VIII.
Then, in September 1536, Tintern surrendered to the King during the suppression of the monasteries, and Henry VIII seized all its land and wealth. The buildings and land were given to Henry Somerset, the Earl of Worcester. He began to rent out parts of the land to local people and soon the area around the abbey was crowded with cottages, workshops and industrial buildings. Iron wire was produced here and further up the valley. The buildings fell into disrepair, and the church was used for playing quoits.
Tintern lay forgotten until the late eighteenth century, when it became fashionable to search out wild landscapes and beautiful ruins. Poets (including Wordsworth) and artists (including Turner) of the Romantic movement came in search of the 'sublime' and the 'picturesque'.
You can well understand their fascination with the place as, despite now having a road close by as well as a bustling pub, it still has an isolated and incredibly peaceful atmosphere. Abbey was not that taken in and decided 3 trips to the toilets would be more fun but Zac was happy to roam the ruins with me and explore.
At the end of a long day we had a quick bite to eat before the drive home. We all perched on the boot of Nathan’s new (second hand) Mondeo as it was still far to precious to allow the kids to snack inside! (Yes, Nathan is now officially a Mondeo Man and proud of it)
I was interested in the references to Wordsworth and Turner and have since discovered that Wordsworth penned his poem “Lines composed a few miles above Tintern Abbey on revisiting the banks of the Wye during a tour, 13 July 1798" (often abbreviated to "Tintern Abbey", "Lines written a few miles above Tintern Abbey" or simply "Lines") on a return visit to the area after a decade’s absence.
Turner’s famous Abbey painting was produced during his visit in 1792.
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