A building site
Each new church at Fountains was, built on the same site as its predecessor,
and not adjacent to it. This was not only unusual but potentially extremely
disruptive, for the monks would not simply have had to contend with
the noise and debris caused by the construction work, but would surely
have had to relocate to another part of the church, or even to another
building, while their choir was being built.
The
timber church at Fountains was evidently the work of expert carpenters.
It was probably a two-storey building and would therefore have
been a substantial structure, rather than a simple wooden shack.(4) This
timber structure was soon replaced with a small stone church, which
was built on the same site. Significantly, it is one of the
earliest known stone churches approved by the Cistercian Order.(5)
Abbot Henry
Murdac’s vehement opposition to the appointment
of William FitzHerbert to the archbishopric of York resulted in
an attack on the abbey in 1146, by an angry mob of William’s
supporters. The extensive damage to the abbey buildings meant that
the church had to be rebuilt. Although this new church was built
on the same site as its predecessor, it stood on a terrace about
one metre high, and was a much larger and grander building. Indeed,
it was a worthy rival to the great abbey church at Rievaulx, and
stood as a testimony to the growing success of Fountains. Whilst
most of the building work was completed in the 1150s/60s, the church
was not finished until c. 1170, during Robert
of Pipewell’s
abbacy. The core of this structure was retained and served the
community throughout the Middle Ages. It is this third church which
has been modelled in three-dimensions.