In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Rievaulx like this:
RIVAULX, or Rievaulx, a township in Helmsley parish, N. R. Yorkshire; on the river Rye, 2¾ miles Wby N of Helmsley. Its name is a corruption of Rye-vale. Acres, 5, 290. Real property, £2,034. Pop., 229. Houses, 42. A Cistertian abbey was founded here, in 1131, by Sir Walter D' Espec; was given, at the dissolution, to the Villierses; passed, in 1695, to the Duncombes; and, both for architecture and for situation, is now one of the most beautiful ruins in Yorkshire. ...
The lower portion of the W side of the transept is partly Norman; and all the rest of the pile is very fine early English. The nave was probably all Norman; and it measured 166 feet in length and 59 feet in width: but, together with three sides of the tower, it has been entirely destroyed. The transept is 118 feet long and 33feet wide; the arch of the extant side of the tower is 75feet high; and the choir is 144 feet long and 63 feet high. The refectory is 125 feet long and 37 feet wide; showsindications of great quondam magnificence; and, as toits masonry, is in good preservation. A terrace is on thehill above the abbey; has a Grecian temple and a pavilion, with frescoes by an Italian artist; and commands fineviews of the ruin and of the neighbouring scenery. There are a chapel of ease and a slightly endowed school.
Rievaulx through time
Rievaulx is now part of Ryedale district. Click here for graphs and data of how Ryedale has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Rievaulx itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Rievaulx, in Ryedale and North Riding | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/14127
Date accessed: 08th May 2024
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