Fountains Abbey is one of the most glorious remnants of medieval Cistercian monasticism in England, and was once one of the wealthiest abbeys in medieval Europe.

Brief Account of the Origins of the Cistercian Order Ideals of the Cistercian Order The Crisis at St. Mary's Abbey, and the exodus of the thirteen founders of Fountains Abbey Foundation and History of Fountains The Decline and Revival of Fountains References for further study Images of Fountains Today

The Cistercians

Bernard of Clairvaux

The Cistercian Order spread very rapidly from its humble beginnings in 1098, when Robert of Molesme and several companions left the Benedictine community of Molesme in search of a more ascetic lifestyle through observance of a more literal obedience to the Rule of St. Benedict . They traveled to "a howling wasteland," Cîiteaux, France, and founded a new community, which they named the novum monasterium. They gradually began to attract others to their movement, including the Burgundian noble, Bernard of Clairvaux . It was Bernard's entrance which began to fuel the growth of what became the Cistercian Order , which had some 300 daughter houses by the end of the twelfth century. All houses were governed by the Carta Caritatis , which mandated a white habit of coarse wool, giving rise to the description of the Cistercians as the White Monks, in contrast to traditional Benedictines, known as the Black Monks. Just as the coarse, undyed wool helped to turn the monk away from the pleasures of the senses, so too the direction to eat only the coarsest wheat bread, and to avoid colored glass in the chapel, gold and silver on the altar was also intended to keep the monks focused on the spiritual life of prayer, governed by the Benedictine Rule.

Return to Index

Cistercian Ideals

The Cistercians believed that they were returning to the original spirit and letter of the Rule of St. Benedict, which had been corrupted by contemporary monastic life. Bernard described the riches and splendor of Cluny as being in a "den of thieves," and Cistercians argued that the Cluniacs had forgotten Benedict's direction on manual labor, as they focused so large a portion of their day on liturgial practices. Cistercians reinvigorated the ideal of manual labor, following Benedict's statement that "idleness is the enemy of the soul" (RB 48:1). The Rule of Benedict also tied manual labor to prayer, enjoining the monastic to "regard all ... goods of the monastery as sacred vessels of the altar" (RB 31:10); one's work, therefore, was a reflection of one's prayer, and prayer a reflection of work. This emphasis on manual labor had an important effect on the development of Europe. The Cistercians deliberately founded their communities in wastelands, remote from centers of population. Their zeal for manual labor resulted in the rejuvenation of Germany's frontiers, as well as the wastelands of northern England, pillaged by the Normans and danes before. They developed new species of apples, became important producers of wine in Europe and wool in England, and excelled in animal husbandry. It has been said that "all the world threatened to become Cîteaux" (Knowles, Monastic Order in England , 224), a reflection of the impact the Cistercian monastic life had on the development of Europe.

Return to Index

Cistercians Found Rievaulx and inspire a crisis at St. Mary's Abbey in York

The rapid growth of the Cistercian Order and the zeal for religious life that marked the twelfth century eventually propelled its monks to England. The Cistercians founded their first house in southern England at Waverly in 1128; their first house in northern England was founded at Rievaulx , north of York in 1132.

As they travelled through the countryside, their obvious zeal and renewed vision of monastic life attracted the attention of other communities, including that of St. Mary's of York, a Benedictine house. St. Mary's was then in a state of decline, and was led by an elderly abbot. Following the visit of the White Monks in 1132, the Prior of St. Mary's, Richard, presented a petition to the abbot calling for the reform of the community along Cistercian lines. The abbot denied the proposal, and tension increased until the Archbishop, Thurston, was called in the resolve the dispute. As the situation became ever more perilous for the thirteen dissidents led by Prior Richard, he was forced to take them into his protection. Return to Index	Ruins of St. Mary's Abbey, York
St. Mary's