BarnOldSwickTownCouncil.gov.uk
Title
Barnoldswick Town Council
Description
Brief History
Shortly after the Norman Conquest, Henry de Lacey, a Norman nobleman, selected Barnoldswick as the site for an important monastery. He had pledged to build one to the memory of God if he recovered from a serious illness.
Looking to fulfil that promise, twelve Cistercian monks and ten lay brothers arrived from Fountains Abbey to begin their work in 1147. A local church already existed, however, and the locals were not happy about visitors interfering in the running of their affairs.
When the climate proved just as inhospitable and the corn failed to ripen, the monks and brothers abandoned Barnoldswick and transferred their energies to the building of Kirkstall Abbey, near Leeds. A few depressions in the ground, thought to be fishponds, along with a spring known as St Mary's Well are all that remains of their work. The site is still known as Monkroyd, but is now home to a housing estate.
Languages
English
