Fountains Abbey, North Yorkshire
Fountains Abbey was very rich and prosperous, and owned vast areas of land across western Yorkshire. Much of its wealth was also based on the trading of wool and lead, two of the Yorkshire Dales’ most abundant resources, by the lay brothers.
However the history of the Abbey was not uneventful. William Thirsk, abbot of Fountains from 1526-1536, was executed by King Henry at Tyburn for plotting against the king, along with his friend Adam de Sedbergh, who was the last abbot of nearby Jervaulx Abbey.
England Culture & Tourism Route © Monika Simon Newbound 2020
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