Tavistock Abbey

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Betsy Grimbald's Tower

In the civil parish of Tavistock.
In the historic county of Devon (Modern Authority of Devon, 1974 county of Devon).

Remains of Tavistock Abbey sited in the centre of the town of Tavistock on the north side of the River Tavy south west Dartmoor. Originally the Benedictine Abbey of St Mary the Virgin and St Rumon begun by Ealdorman Ordgar and completed by his son Ordulf 975-80. It was burnt down by the Danes in 997 but was soon restored. The abbot and 20 monks surrendered the monastery in 1539. Remains include two sections of boundary wall, the Great Gate (west entrance to the precincts), the 'still-house' (a small square tower), the Abbot's Hall and its porch, the Abbey Gatehouse also called Higher Gate or Town Gate and some ancillary buildings on the eastern boundary of the Abbey precincts, possibly the Abbey Mill. Betsy Grimbald's Tower, a gatehouse, contains a gun loop.

This site has been described as a;
Fortified Ecclesiastical site.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Questionable.
Masonry ruins/remnants remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*. (Images of England number 93472 etc.)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SX481743

PastScape number; 437967

Books

Knowles, David and Hadcock, R. Neville, 1971, Medieval religious houses in England and Wales (Longmans) p77, 483

Journal Articles

Kenyon, J.R., 1981 'Early Artillery Fortifications in England and Wales: a Preliminary Survey and Re-appraisal' Archaeological Journal Vol138 p227
1977, Fort Vol4 p84

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The information on this web page may be derived from information compiled by and/or copyright of English Heritage and other individuals and organisations.

It is an offence to disturb a Scheduled Monument without consent. It is a destruction of everyone's heritage to remove archaeological evidence from any site without proper recording and reporting. Don't use metal detectors on historic sites without authorisation.

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*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.

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Tavistock Abbey

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SX481743

Sources of information, references and further reading