Well to Furness Abbey (St Mary of Furness) in Barrow for a poke around the ruins!
Really quite an eye-opener too. Originally a Benedictine monastery founded by monks in forested land gifted by King Stephen in 1127, it grew in wealth and power under the Cistercian order, ultimately becoming the second richest in England after Fountains Abbey. The remains of the abbey lie in a wooded valley; the "vale of nightshade" described by Wordsworth in his 1805 Prelude. A small stream - Mill Beck - flows through the valley in canals under and around the abbey buildings.
The precinct and outer court are there in outline only, but the abbey church with its north and south trancepts and great west tower, originally 160' high, but now standing just 60' above the nave, form the greater part of the ruin. The chapter house, cloister and undercroft lead south, away from the church toward the chapel, buttery and kitchen.
St Mary of Furness or Furness Abbey (from Dalton online)
The undercroft and south trancept
Sandstone bricks form the vaulted kitchen ceiling
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