Sawley Abbey, Clitheroe

This Cistercian Monastery was founded in January 1147 by monks from Newminster Abbey in Northumberland. Although never particularly wealthy, the Abbey survived for almost 400 years until its Dissolution in 1536.

The monks were reinstated later in that year, during the Pilgrimage of Grace - an unsuccessful northern uprising against Henry VIII's religious reforms. Following the suppression of the rebellion in 1537, the Abbot and two monks from Sawley were executed at Lancaster for their part. Although very little of the Abbey survives today, it is possible to reconstruct how the main buildings may have appeared. The Abbey Church stood to the north of a central Cloister, with the Chapter House and Monks' Dormitory to the east and the Lay Brothers' Dormitory to the west. Other domestic buildings lay along the south side of the Cloister.

By the late 1300s, there were only two Lay Brothers at Sawley, so their accommodation was partly remodelled and used as the Abbot's House. Other Abbey buildings lay outside the present day site boundary, which are not shown here. Decorated stonework from the Abbey is also incorporated into many local buildings.

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