Hulton Abbey
| Monastery information | |
|---|---|
| Order | Cistercian |
| Established | 1223 |
| Disestablished | 1538 |
| Dedicated to | Virgin Mary |
| People | |
| Founder(s) | Henry de Audley |
| Site | |
| Location | Abbey Hulton, Stoke-on-Trent, England |
| Coordinates | 53°02′22″N 2°08′33″W / 53.03944°N 2.14250°WCoordinates: 53°02′22″N 2°08′33″W / 53.03944°N 2.14250°W |
| Public access | Yes |
Hulton Abbey is a Scheduled Monument and former monastery located in what is now Abbey Hulton, a suburb of Stoke-on-Trent. A daughter house of the Cistercian Combermere Abbey, the abbey was founded by Henry de Audley in the early 13th century. Throughout its life, the abbey was relatively small and poor, with one of the lowest incomes of all Staffordshire religious houses. The abbey was dissolved by Henry VIII in 1538, with its land and assets being sold.
Little remains of the abbey today, but continued excavations have revealed the foundations of a number of the principal claustral buildings, as well as human burials. In 1963, Hulton Abbey was designated a Scheduled Monument, under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979, however due to its poor condition it is considered Heritage at Risk. The site is now owned and managed by Stoke-on-Trent City Council.
Between the late 6th century and the reign of Henry VIII, over 700 monastic communities were founded in England; of these, at least 75 were founded by members of the Cistercian order. The size of these communities varied from several hundred members to only a handful. During Medieval times, monasteries were important contributors to the surrounding community. They were centres of education, charity and worhsip, with the largest and wealthiest establishments wielding a degree of political influence. The Cistercians emphasised a life of manual labour, prayer and self-sufficiency. Many of their abbeys traditionally supported themselves through agriculture.
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