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Reading Abbey is a Cluniac and later Benedictine monastery founded in 1121 by King Henry I in Berkshire, England, which became one of the wealthiest and most influential religious houses in medieval England. The abbey was established as a daughter house of the Cluniac order and housed the reliquary of the Holy Hand of Saint James, an important pilgrimage destination that enhanced its prestige and revenues. Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539, the site was demolished and its stones repurposed, leaving substantial surviving ruins including parts of the claustral buildings and refectory wall. During the English Civil War, the ruins were further modified by the construction of earthwork fortifications, evidence of which remains visible on the site today.
Reading Abbey: a Cluniac and Benedictine monastery and Civil War earthwork. is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1007932. View the official record →
Reading Abbey is a Cluniac and later Benedictine monastery founded in 1121 by King Henry I in Berkshire, England, which became one of the wealthiest and most influential religious houses in medieval England. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1007932.
Reading Abbey: a Cluniac and Benedictine monastery and Civil War earthwork. is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1007932.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including High Bridge (0.3 km), Cropmark complex S of Charvil Lane (5 km), Cropmark complex in Straighthanger Field (5.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Reading Abbey: a Cluniac and Benedictine monastery and Civil War earthwork.'s history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Reading Abbey: a Cluniac and Benedictine monastery and Civil War earthwork. stands on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.