Reading Abbey

Reading Abbey
	The chapter house, from the site of the monks' dormitory
	Location within Reading Town Centre
Monastery information
Full name	The Abbey of Reading, dedicated to the Virgin and St John the Evangelist
Order	Cluniac
Established	18 June 1121
Disestablished	1539
Dedicated to	Mary, mother of Jesus; John the Evangelist
People
Founder(s)	Henry I of England
Important associated figures	Hugh Faringdon
Site
Location	Reading, Berkshire, England
Coordinates	51°27′22.85″N 0°57′54.31″W / 51.4563472°N 0.9650861°W
Visible remains	Inner rubble cores of the walls of the major buildings; gateway and hospitium intact.
Public access	Open daily

Reading Abbey is a large, ruined abbey in the centre of the town of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. It was founded by Henry I in 1121 "for the salvation of my soul, and the souls of King William, my father, and of King William, my brother, and Queen Maud, my wife, and all my ancestors and successors." In its heyday the abbey was one of Europe's largest royal monasteries.^[1] The traditions of the Abbey are continued today by the neighbouring St James's Church, which is partly built using stones of the Abbey ruins.^[2]^[3]

Reading Abbey was the focus of a major £3 million project called "Reading Abbey Revealed" which conserved the ruins and Abbey Gateway and resulted in them being re-opened to the public on 16 June 2018. Alongside the conservation, new interpretation of the Reading Abbey Quarter was installed, including a new gallery at Reading Museum, and an extensive activity programme.^[4]^[5]

Abbey Ward of Reading Borough Council takes its name from Reading Abbey, which lies within its boundaries. Now HM Prison Reading is on the site.

^ Coates, Alan (1999). English medieval books: The Reading Abbey collections from foundation to dispersal. Oxford historical monographs. Oxford: Clarendon Press. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198207566.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-820756-6.
^ The staff of the Trust for Wessex Archaeology and Reading Museum and Art Gallery (1983). Reading Abbey Rediscovered: A summary of the Abbey's history and recent archaeological excavations. Trust for Wessex Archaeology.
^ "Visit". readingabbeyquarter.org.uk. Reading Borough Council. 18 May 2018. Archived from the original on 6 February 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
^ "Reading Abbey Abbey ruins reopen after £3m repairs". www.bbc.co.uk. BBC. 16 June 2018. Archived from the original on 17 July 2018. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
^ "About the Abbey Quarter". readingabbeyquarter.org.uk. Reading Borough Council. 14 June 2017. Archived from the original on 25 July 2019. Retrieved 25 July 2019.

[Coates-1] Coates, Alan (1999). English medieval books: The Reading Abbey collections from foundation to dispersal. Oxford historical monographs. Oxford: Clarendon Press. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198207566.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-820756-6.

[rarwa-2] The staff of the Trust for Wessex Archaeology and Reading Museum and Art Gallery (1983). Reading Abbey Rediscovered: A summary of the Abbey's history and recent archaeological excavations. Trust for Wessex Archaeology.

[aqvisit-3] "Visit". readingabbeyquarter.org.uk. Reading Borough Council. 18 May 2018. Archived from the original on 6 February 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.

[4] "Reading Abbey Abbey ruins reopen after £3m repairs". www.bbc.co.uk. BBC. 16 June 2018. Archived from the original on 17 July 2018. Retrieved 24 June 2018.

[aqabout-5] "About the Abbey Quarter". readingabbeyquarter.org.uk. Reading Borough Council. 14 June 2017. Archived from the original on 25 July 2019. Retrieved 25 July 2019.

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