Portal:Cheshire/Selected article/34



Darnhall Abbey was a short-lived, late-thirteenth century Cistercian abbey at Darnhall, dedicated to St Mary. It was founded by Lord Edward, later King Edward I (pictured), between 1266 and 1272, reportedly in thanks for God saving him and his fleet from a storm. Some of its monks came from Dore Abbey in Herefordshire. There was probably only a single abbot, named Walter.

The site chosen at Darnhall was discovered to be unsuitable. Money was short, as Edward did not provide enough for the original foundation, but the abbey was allowed to trade wool to augment its finances. Although the abbey was originally intended to house a hundred monks, its endowment was insufficient, and thirty monks became the standard.

By 1275, the abbey's feudal tenantry in Darnhall village tried to withdraw the services claimed by the abbey; the dispute was to continue for fifty years. That year, the abbey relocated four miles north to Wetenhalewes, to found the better-known Vale Royal Abbey. The remaining buildings of Darnhall Abbey became the new foundation's monastic grange.

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