CPAT Regional Historic Environment Record
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Valle Crucis Abbey

Primary Reference Number (PRN) : 101169
Trust : Clwyd Powys
Community : Llantysilio
Unitary authority : Denbighshire
NGR : SJ2044744139
Site Type (preferred type first) : MEDIEVAL ABBEY
Status : state care , listed building I, scheduled monument

Summary :
Valle Crucis in the vale of Llangollen was founded as a Cistercian house by Madog ap Gruffydd
Maelor, Prince of northern Powys (Powys Fadog) in 1201, on a site that was already occupied and known as Llanegwestl, the native inhabitants being removed to Stansty and Northcroft townships
near Wrexham. Its subsequent history is complex but it clearly suffered during the Welsh wars of
Edward I and again during the Glyndŵr rebellion and was finally dissolved in 1537. It has seen
several episodes of excavation in both the 19th and 20th centuries, and probably has the fullest
exposed plan of any monastic establishment in east and north-east Wales. (Silvester et al, 2011)

Description :
Remains of Cistercian abbey founded in 1201, suppressed 1537. Consists of a church with north and south trancepts and presbytery with adjoining cloisters. Chapter house.

Reference to advowry tenants (Pratt 1987, 9-11).

Geophysical survey carried out 1992 located possible grave stones etc. Evaluation and excavation 1993, watching briefs 1994 and 1995 identified graves and medieval finds. (Silvester, R J, 2001, pp87-92, Thomas, D 1993e, 73; Thomas, D 1993g; Thomas, D 1994b, 64; Thomas, D 1995b).

See PRNs 34954 to 34957 and 44493.

Scheduled (Cadw 2000).

The abbey and its adjacent domestic buildings form a well-defined complex, in contrast to the rest of the precinct of which virtually nothing is known. The abbey took shape in the period immediately following its foundation, with subsequent remodelling in the mid-14th and early 15th centuries. This is partly attested by the gable top at the west front of the church which records that this building was undertaken by Abbot Adam (1330-1344). Following the dissolution, the building was adapted for use as a mansion and then at a later period became a farmhouse, before falling into decay. The west front was restored by Gilbert Scott in 1870.

The abbey buildings are well-evidenced around a central cloister. However, it is assumed
that a further cloister serving the monastic infirmary, and perhaps the original abbots house lay to the east. Nothing is known of them.

The Precinct and its Boundary. It has been suggested (by D. H. Evans) that the outer court lay off to the west. RCAHMW air photographs from 2006 suggest the parchmark of a wall line to the south, although there is nothing visible on the ground. The same photographs hint at anomalies that may also be monastic (Silvester et al, 2011).

Sources :
Anon , 1884 , title unknown - Valle Crucis Abbey
Anon , 1884 , title unknown - Valle Crucis Abbey
Bond, J , 2005 , The location and siting of Cistercian houses in Wales and the West , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 154 : 51-80
Buck, S & Buck, N , 1740-42 , Valle Crucis Abbby, Co. Denbigh, E view
Buck, S & Buck, N , 1740-42 , Valle Crucis Abbby, Co. Denbigh, W view
Burnham, H., 1995 , A Guide to Ancient and Historic Wales: Clwyd and Powys
Burton, J , 2005 , Homines sanctitatis eximiae, religionis consummatae, the Cistercians in England and Wales , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 154 : 27-50
Butler, L A S , 1971 , Valle Crucis Abbey
Butler, L A S , 1972 , Valle Crucis Abbey
Butler, L A S , 1976 , Valle Crucis Abbey: an excavation in 1970 , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 125 : 80-126
Butler, Lawrence , 1999 , Presidential Address: The Cistercians in Wales and Yorkshire , Archaeologia Cambrensis : CXLVIII : 1-21
Cadw , 1988 , Cadw Field Monument Wardens Report - De003(DEN)
Cadw , 1992 , Cadw Field Monument Wardens Report - De003(DEN)
Cadw , 2000 , Cadw Field Monument Wardens Report - De003(DEN)
Cadw , 2000 , Database of Listed Buildings in Wales
Cadw , 2006 , Cadw Field Monument Wardens Report - De003(DEN)
Cadw , 2016 , Database of Listed Buildings in Wales ( © Cadw)
Cadw , ND , Scheduling map - DE003(DEN)
Cadw , ND , Scheduling map - DE003(DEN)
Clwyd Fine Arts Trust , nd , The Artist's Journey through North Wales: Clwyd
DRT , 1886 , Merionethshire Six Hundred Years Ago: Ecclesiastical , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 10 : 108-120
Dungannon , 1852 , On the recent excavations at Valle Crucis Abbey
Emery, A , 2000 , Greater Medieval Houses of England and Wales, volume II: East Anglia, central England and Wales
Evans, D H , 1995 , Valle Crucis Abbey
Gastineau, Henry , 1830 , North Wales Illustrated
Gray, M , 2005 , Preface to Cistercians in Wales and the West , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 154 : 17-26
Grose, Francis , 1776 , The Antiquities of England and Wales, Vol. VII
Knowles, D & Hadcock, R N , 1963 , Medieval Religious Houses in England and Wales
Leonard, J., Preshous, D., Roberts, M., Smyth, J., and Train, C., 2000 , The Gale of Life: Two Thousand Years in South-West Shropshire
Lloyd, S J , 2001 , title unknown - Valle Crucis Abbey
Lloyd-Williams & Underwood , 1872 , The Architectural Antiquities and Village Churches of Denbighshire
Lott, Graham and Barclay, Bill , 2002 , Geology and building stones in Wales (north) / Daeareg a cherrig adeiladu yng Nghymru (y gogledd)
Moore, D , 1997 , Thomas Pennant's Vision of the Landscape , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 146 : 138-177
Moore, D , 2005 , Ruined abbeys in romantic landscapes , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 154 : 179-214
Ordnance Survey , 1975 , OS record card SJ 24 SW 4
Pratt, D , 1995 , Valle Crucis Abbey, 1606 , Clwyd Historian : 34 : 23-27
Pratt, D (ed) , 1987 , Sir Ddinbych
Pratt, D., 1997 , The Dissolution of Valle Crucis Abbey
Pratt, Derrick , 2011 , Valle Crucis Abbey: lands and charters , Denbighshire Historical Society Transactions : 59 : 9-55
Pryce, H , 2005 , Patrons and patronage among the Cistercians in Wales , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 154 : 81-96
Ralegh Radford, C A , 1953 , Valle Crucis Abbey
Ralegh Radford, C A , 1974 , Valle Crucis Abbey
Rees, S E , 1997 , Historical and Cultural Importance of Ponds , Aquatic Conservation : 7.2 : 133-139
Richardson, G C , 1888 , Recent discoveries at Valle Crucis abbey
Roberts, Enid , 2001 , The Impact of the Cistercians on Welsh Life and Culture in North and Mid Wales , Transactions of the Denbighshire Historical Society : 50 : 13-23
Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales , 1914 , Inventory of the Ancient Monuments in Wales and Monmouthshire - IV County of Denbigh
Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales , 1998 , National Monuments Record of Wales
Silvester, R J , 2001 , Archaeological Works at Valle Crucis Abbey, Denbighshire , Archaeology in Wales : 41 : 87-92
Silvester, R J and Hankinson, R , 2011 , Medieval and Early Post-Medieval Monastic and Ecclesiastical Sites in East and North-East Wales. The Scheduling Enhancement Programme: Recommendations ( © Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust)
The Handley Partnership , 2014ff , HAAbase built heritage assessment system: Buildings at Risk database
Thomas, D , 1993 , Archaeological Assessment at Valle Crucis Abbey, January 1993 ( © Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust)
Thomas, D , 1993 , Archaeological excavations at Valle Crucis Abbey, October 1993 ( © Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust)
Thomas, D , 1993 , Valle Crucis Abbey , Archaeology in Wales : 33 : 73
Thomas, D , 1994 , Valle Crucis Abbey
Thomas, D , 1995 , Valle Crucis Abbey, Llangollen, Clwyd. Watching Brief ( © Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust)
Unknown , 1957 , title unknown - Valle Crucis Abbey
Unknown , 1960 , title unknown - Valle Crucis Abbey
Various , 1998 , The Cistercian Abbeys of Britain Far from the Concourse of Men
Vernon Price, G , 1935 , Valle Crucis abbey
Williams, D H , 1990 , Atlas of Cistercian Lands in Wales
Williams, David H , 2014 , Fasti Cistercienses Cambrenses , Archaeologia Cambrensis : 163 : 185-235
Williams, J Richard , 2015 , The Ancient Abbeys and Priories of Wales
Wood, John George , 1813 , The Principal Rivers of Wales Illustrated, consisting of views from the source of each river to its mouth

Events :
34954 : Valle Crucis Abbey, excavation 1993 (year : 1993)
34956 : Valle Crucis Abbey, watching brief 1994 (year : 1994)
34957 : Valle Crucis Abbey, watching brief 1995 (year : 1995)
44493 : Valle Crucis Abbey, evaluation 1993 (year : 1993)
34955 : Valle Crucis Abbey, geophysical survey 1992 (year : 1992)
123175 : Medieval and Early Post-Medieval Monastic and Ecclesiastical Sites in East and North-East Wales. Scheduling Enhancement Programme, 2010-11 (year : 2010-11)
123707 : Medieval and Early Post-Medieval Monastic and Ecclesiastical Sites in East and North-East Wales, desk-based assessment 2010-11 (year : 2010-11)

Related records
CPAT Historic Environment Record (HER) 101169
Handley Partnership: HAA Buildings at Risk Database 19693_1 http://haabase.com/buildingdetails.php/?BARURN2=19693_1
CPAT Historic Environment Record (HER) 101628

Compiled date : 31-10-1990


Images :



Archaeological data, from the Historic Environment Record, supplied by The Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust in partnership with Local Authorities, Cadw and the partners of ENDEX © CPAT, 2025 (and in part © Crown, 2025). It is intended to be used for private research only and is not for use as part of commercial projects. If you wish to use this information for publication in printed or multimedia form or to compile resources for commercial use, prior permission must be obtained in writing. Use of this information is subject to the terms and conditions of access to HER data published on CPAT's website. Please contact the HER if you have any further questions regarding this information. Please quote the Primary Reference Numbers (PRNs) in any correspondence.

April 1, 2025, 6:23 am - File produced for Archwilio from CPAT's Regional HER.
Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust, The Offices, Coed y Dinas, Welshpool, Powys, SY21 8RP
tel (01938) 553670, email her@cpat.org.uk, website www.cpat.org.uk

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