Kirkstall Abbey

Kirkstall Abbey, a Cistercian abbey in Yorkshire, stands 3 miles NW. of Leeds, in the midst of modern manufacturing establishments. Next after Fountains Abbey, it is the best-preserved monastic ruin in the county. First founded at Barnoldswick in the same neighbourhood in 1147, but five years later moved to its present site, the abbey is mainly Transition Norman and Perpendicular in style. The church is, like most Cistercian churches, long and narrow, with little ornamentation, and a low tower. The abbey was presented to the town by Colonel North in 1889.