Newstead Abbey

St. Mary’s Monastery in Newstead was founded by the Augustinians around 1170 with the support of the King of England, Henry II — this was one of many “penances” for the king for the murder of Thomas Becket. At the end of the 13th century, the monastery was rebuilt and expanded; the second expansion took place in the 15th century, when, among other things, the prior house was built. The monastery was designed so that at least 13 monks lived in it, although at the time of dissolution, apparently, there were only 12 of them (including the prior). According to Valor Ecclesiasticus, in 1534 the monastery's annual income was over £ 167. The monastery was closed on July 21, 1539; the monks received a pension. During work to deepen the local lake, conducted at the end of the 18th century, a music stand was discovered at its bottom, which was thrown by the monks into the pond during dissolution.

On May 26, 1540, King Henry VIII of England transferred Newsted Abbey to Sir John Byron of Colwick, who began to rebuild it into his country house. John was succeeded by his son, Sir John Byron of Clayton Hall. During this period, the interior of the building was significantly changed, and church buildings were largely destroyed. Then the residence passed to the first baron of the Byron clan, also John, who was a member of parliament: since he died in France without children, ownership passed to his brother Richard. Richard's son, William, was a little-known poet; in 1695 his property was transferred to his son - also William - the fourth Baron Byron.

At the beginning of the 18th century, the 4th Lord Byron set up landscaped gardens around the former abbey: the estate became majestic and fashionable for its time. The 5th baron, known as the "evil lord", destroyed the estate so that in the event of his death, his son, also William, would receive only debt and useless property. Father devastated Newstead Abbey: he allowed the main building to collapse, ordered the cutting down of centuries-old trees and killed more than 2,000 deer in local forests. In this case, the "evil lord" was destined to outlive his son and grandson - he died on May 21, 1798, at the age of seventy-nine years. The title and abbey went to his heir - the poet George Gordon Byron , who became the 6th baron.

The young Lord Byron soon arrived in Newstead and was impressed by the estate: the scale of the estate was to the taste of an extravagant young man who was distinguished by a sense of self-worth. However, Newsted’s problems were also widespread: the estate’s annual income fell to £ 800, and its buildings needed repairs. The poet himself and his mother soon moved to Nottingham - not one of them lived in Newstead for a long time. At the same time, the view of the ruined family residence became one “metaphor for the fall” of the family for the aspiring poet. Since January 1803, the estate itself was leased to the 23-year-old Henry Edward Yelverton, the 19th Baron Gray de Rutin; the rent was 50 pounds per year.

• Shelford Monastery
• Oksenhausen Abbey
• Neresheim Abbey
• Klosterbeuren Monastery

• Washington Irving (1835). Abbotsford and Newstead Abbey. J. Murray.
• William Page, ed. (1910). "Houses of Austin canons: The priory of Newstead", A History of the County of Nottingham: Volume 2. Victoria County History. pp. 112-117.
• John Beckett, Sheila Aley: Byron and Newstead. The Aristocrat and the Abbey. University of Delaware Press, Newark 2001, ISBN 0-87413-751-9 .
• Rosalys Coope, Pete Smith: Newstead Abbey. A Nottinghamshire Country House: its Owners and Architectural History 1540-1931 (= Thoroton Society Record Series. Band 48). Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire, Nottingham 2014, ISBN 978-0-902719-26-2 .

• Newstead Abbey and Adjoining Boundary Wall . imagesofengland.org.uk . Historic England (2014). Date of appeal April 18, 2019.