If you’re looking for rolling green hills, castles, and quaint cobble streets, you’ll find all that in North Yorkshire, especially is you visit Fountains Abbey.
In the past, quite a few people I’ve met on my travels envisage England as being an idyllic background of rolling countryside and stately homes, and love the idea of spending an idyllic afternoon drinking High Tea and taking a stroll in valleys scattered with sheep and deer. I usually tell them that they have watched too many episodes of Downtown Abbey!
Needless to say, if they arrive in somewhere like London (which is likely for most international flights) and are greeted with the chaos of people trying to get from A to B as quickly as possible, they would get a heavy dose of reality.
Don’t get me wrong, I love, love, love London! Its energy can be replicated by no other place and any visitor to England who doesn’t go to London would be missing out.
However, the same point isn’t reversed for those who only visit London – that’s to say – they’re missing out if they don’t visit the North of England, in particular the region of North Yorkshire which belongs to Yorkshire, England’s biggest county.
North Yorkshire is like a scene from a quintessential English film, think Wuthering Heights, The Secret Garden, and Mansfield Park. Essentially, North Yorkshire is quintessential England. A place that encapsulates this the most is Studley Royal Park, home to the ruins of Fountains Abbey, which are together a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
On any given day, Fountain’s Abbey is a feast of beauty, and the perfect time to explore its 800 acres of beautiful countryside is when the sun is flaunting itself.
However, saying this, England hasn’t been the recipient of much sunshine this year so I probably wouldn’t advise you to hold out (instead, pack a raincoat and wear decent foorwear).
A trip here offers an unparalleled opportunity to appreciate the range of England’s heritage. Discover the magnificent 12th-century abbey ruins and the only surviving Cistercian corn mill.
The ruins are amongst the most significant monastic remains in Europe and are currently the focus of an extensive archaeological and architectural research project which, when complete, will make it one of the most clearly understood and well documented medieval abbeys.
Entrance fee
Entrance to the garden and ruins is £19 for adults and £10.50 (as of 2024). Quite pricey, but it all goes towards maintaining this incredible National Heritage site.
If you have a National Trust card, it’s free for members.
History of Fountains Abbey
The beautiful landscaped Georgian water garden of Studley Royal was built in the 1800s, complete with Neo-classical statues, follies and breath-taking views.
When the garden was built the abbey was already in ruins, because, to cut a long story short, when King Henry VIII was denied the permission to divorce his wife by the Pope he destroyed the monasteries since they were Catholic and controlled from Rome.
He ordered to get rid of them to show that he was now in control and not the Pope, then set up the Church of England. (What less can we expect from the tyrannical king who beheaded two of his wives?!)
Walking through the ruins, with its huge window frames and towering pillars it’s not difficult to envisage how spectacular it must have looked complete with colourful stain-glass windows. But equally, part of its modern day appeal is that we don’t see these ruins very often, and they provide a window into the past. Fountain Abbey are among Europe’s greatest ruins.
The garden, with its woodlands and rivers was created to tie in with the natural features of English countryside. This was in was in opposition to the geometric style of French gardening which was popular at the time.
However, there are some features that touch on a more manicured aesthetic. The garden includes a large pond known as the ‘moon pond’ that is located in front of a Greek style villa and statues of tastefully sculptured Greek Gods.
One of my favourite parts of visiting Fountains Abbey is being able to see deer roaming around the grounds of the park. Ahhh ‘tis the perfect backdrop for a picnic, don’t you think?
So summer is here and North Yorkshire is waiting … why not be one of them?
4 Responses
Aghh! That looks so beautiful! Wasn’t there a youtube video going viral a while back about a pop-up wedding at an ancient castle like this one? It could’ve been another similar to this one, but what a location to say ‘I do’.
Hey Audrey! I don’t think I’ve seen the video you’re referring to, but if it was a stately home/castle in England then it may well have been in Yorkshire, as North Yorkshire in particular has them in abundance! I love how these places give a glimpse into different periods of England’s history!
I love the green grass against the stunning ruins.
I didn’t know that Henry VIII had two wives beheaded. That’s just so wrong.
I forgot how beautiful England can look in the summer after months and months of relentless cold weather Mike!
Ooou yes…. our former King was a wicked man. We should have dropped the Monarchy there and then!!