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Byland Abbey: History
Byland Abbey: Buildings
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Getting along with the neighbours
Whilst the Cistercians sought out locations ‘far from the haunts of men’, they did not live in complete isolation and had to contend with problems arising from their proximity to other religious communities. For Byland, this was chiefly, the Augustinian Canons of Newburgh, also founded by Roger de Mowbray, and the Cistercians of Rievaulx. When the monks moved to Old Byland in 1142, they formally yielded their lands at Hood to the Augustinians of Bridlington, to establish a new community there; in return, they received the tithes of Wildon and Cam. The site at Hood was not well suited to the establishment of a community and after three years the canons moved to Newburgh, converting the land at Hood to a grange. In doing so they effectively broke the terms of the agreement and this, it seems, ignited a series of disputes between the two houses. Hostility was intensified following Byland’s absorption by the Cistercian Order, for this meant that the monks were now exempt from paying tithes; subsequently the canons were denied their dues from certain areas. Roger de Mowbray was instrumental in healing the rift between the two communities. He endeavoured to placate both of his foundations and through gifts of lands and rents sought to protect Byland’s privileges yet ensure that Newburgh did not lose out. Antagonisms were finally brought to an end with agreements made between 1154 and 1157.(37)
When the monks of Byland relocated to Old Byland in 1142, they were still part of the Savigniac family and encountered the hostility of their Cistercian neighbours at Rievaulx. The White Monks complained that the newcomers’ bells were discordant with their own and the cause of confusion. Moreover, the arrival of the Byland monks impeded their own plans to expand south of the River Rye. Accordingly, the Savigniacs were forced to relocate and move to Stocking. |
