HISTORY OF CROXDEN ABBEY

Croxden Abbey was begun in 1179 after Bertram de Verdun, an important local nobleman, granted land to a community of Cistercian monks in 1176.
At its peak in the 13th century, Croxden housed about 70 monks.
Following the monastery’s suppression in 1538 the abbey and its lands were converted into a farm.
The visible remains today include parts of the abbey church, which was one of the most elaborate churches of any Cistercian abbey in England, together with the infirmary and abbot’s lodging.

Source:
English Heritage

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March 20, 2025

Croxden Abbey, also known as "Abbey of the Vale of St. Mary at Croxden", was a Cistercian abbey. A daughter house of the abbey in Aunay-sur-Odon, Normandy, the abbey was founded by Bertram III de Verdun of Alton Castle, Staffordshire, in the 12th century. The abbey was dissolved in 1538.

In 1176, Bertram III de Verdun, the lord of the manor of Croxden, endowed a site for a new abbey near Alton, Staffordshire, to a group of 12 Cistercian monks from Aunay-sur-Odon, Normandy. Bertram founded the abbey, like many noblemen of his time, for the souls of his family.

The monks remained at the Alton site until 1179, before moving to land near Croxden, a few miles south.

Croxden was relatively prosperous, drawing the majority of its wealth from sheep farming. By 1315, the monks were supplying more wool to the continent than any other religious house in the county, with transactions being recorded with Florentine merchants well into the 1420s.

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Elevation 130 m

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Location: Croxden, East Staffordshire, Staffordshire, West Midlands Region, England, United Kingdom

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