Haughmond Abbey

Haughmond Abbey is a ruinous Augustinian abbey founded in 1130 by William Fitz Alan of Clun. The original structure was rebuilt in the late 12th century, with abbot's lodgings added in the 13th century and modified in the 14th century, including the kitchens. The abbey was suppressed in 1539 and subsequently converted into a dwelling. The abbey is constructed of white sandstone rubble and ashlar, built against and partially into Haughmond Hill.

The church, located north of the cloister, has been razed, but the doorway to the northwest corner of the cloisters remains, featuring shafts, shaft rings, and decorated Norman capitals. Geometrical motifs are present on the south side. Further remains include a large lavatorium within the west cloister wall. The chapter house features three late 12th-century arches; the outer pair have smaller windows, and the central arch serves as a doorway. Shafts with foliated capitals divide the arches. A C16 domestic conversion left massive moulded ceiling beams. The east wall is cut off, displaying a bay window and buttresses at the angles. Three chimneys of the 14th and 15th centuries are still visible within what remain of the kitchens.

The infirmary comprises three bays divided by buttresses, with a two-light window of pointed arch design, featuring transomed trefoil heads. The abbot’s lodging has a gable end with angle buttresses to the east, incorporating a large, 15th or early 16th-century three-sided bay window with two Tudor-arch lights within moulded, square-headed frames to each face.

Archaeological excavations in 1975-79 revealed the plan of an early 12th-century church and a small cloister, which both were demolished during the late 12th-century rebuilding. The reredorter is set diagonally to the east of the abbot's lodgings and adjoins the south end of the dorter range. The site is in Guardianship and is Scheduled as an Ancient Monument.