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Shap Abbey(See also Shap)
The Abbey of St Mary was originally established near Kendal, by Thomas, son of Gospatric, then moved to the Shap location. The monastery, built in the chaste Gothic style, was dedicated to God and St. Mary Magdalene. It was generously endowed with pastureland and privileges-all the wood the canons wanted and the free grinding of wheat at the mill. Cattle, oxen, and sheep made up part of the prosperous abbey's possessions.
Shap Abbey is located on the A6. Photos courtesy of Barbara Ballard and Crown Inn Back to Abbeys Monasteries and Churches © 1997-2008 by The Cumbria Directory. Reproduction of this work in whole or in part, including images, and reproduction in electronic media, without documented permission from The Cumbria Directory is prohibited. |
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Head up the A6 to the tiny village of Shap and
the road signposted for the Abbey of St. Mary. Follow the narrowing lane to the crest of a steep
hill that leads down into the isolated valley of the River Lowther. It's an experience not to be
missed-the sight of the gaunt ruins of the Abbey tower standing stark against the sky. In this
remote and isolated countryside, little remains of the 12th century Abbey, once the
home of a dozen Premonstratensian monks-their white robes earned them the name "white canons"-who
combined a life of prayer and discipline with parish work as priests.
The medieval records of the abbey, founded in 1199, have disappeared. However, it
is known that one of the abbots, Robert Redman, became bishop of St Asaph, then Exeter, then Ely.
The west tower probably dates from the early 1500's, the rest ranging from the
13th-15th centuries. Like other abbeys, its doors closed when Henry VIII
dissolved the monasteries. The Abbot and Canons received a pension, and the abbey lands were
sold. Parts of the building were converted into the farm at the site, and other stone was used to
build Shap Market Hall and Lowther Castle.