Remains of Thornton Abbey Church and Adjoining Monastic Ranges
REMAINS OF THORNTON ABBEY CHURCH AND ADJOINING MONASTIC RANGES, COLLEGE ROAD
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- I
- List Entry Number:
- 1215139
- Date first listed:
- 06-Nov-1967
- List Entry Name:
- Remains of Thornton Abbey Church and Adjoining Monastic Ranges
- Statutory Address:
- REMAINS OF THORNTON ABBEY CHURCH AND ADJOINING MONASTIC RANGES, COLLEGE ROAD
Location
Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places.
Use of this mapping is subject to terms and conditions .
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.
What is the National Heritage List for England?
The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.
The list includes:
 |
Buildings |
 |
Scheduled monuments |
 |
Parks and gardens |
 |
Battlefields |
 |
Shipwrecks |
Images of England Project
- Date:
- 2000-08-03
- Reference:
- IOE01/02622/09
- Rights:
- © Mr Ian Wright. Source: Historic England Archive
Local Heritage Hub
Unlock and explore hidden histories, aerial photography, and listed buildings and places for every county, district, city and major town across England.
Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- I
- List Entry Number:
- 1215139
- Date first listed:
- 06-Nov-1967
- Date of most recent amendment:
- 17-Oct-1985
- List Entry Name:
- Remains of Thornton Abbey Church and Adjoining Monastic Ranges
- Statutory Address 1:
- REMAINS OF THORNTON ABBEY CHURCH AND ADJOINING MONASTIC RANGES, COLLEGE ROAD
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- REMAINS OF THORNTON ABBEY CHURCH AND ADJOINING MONASTIC RANGES, COLLEGE ROAD
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- North Lincolnshire (Unitary Authority)
- Parish:
- Thornton Curtis
- National Grid Reference:
- TA 11804 18932
Details
TA 11 NW THORNTON CURTIS COLLEGE ROAD (east side)
10/78 Remains of Thornton Abbey church and adjoining 6.11.67 monastic ranges (formerly listed as Church Ruins Thornton Abbey)
GV I
Ruins of Abbey church and adjoining monastic buildings founded as a Priory in 1139. Late C12 - early C13 dormitory vault, remainder largely rebuilt between mid C13 and late C14: church begun 1264, south transept 1280-90, chapter house 1282-1308, cloistral range begun 1322-3, refectory 1348-64, with minor late C15 - early C16 additions. C20 repairs. Chalk, limestone and ironstone rubble with limestone ashlar facing and dressings; sections of later brickwork to south and east monastic ranges. Plan: criciform church with 8-bay aisled nave, 2-bay north and south transepts with east aisles, 5-bay presbytery with chapel of St Thomas adjoining to north and 5-bay Lady Chapel adjoining to east. Monastic buildings arranged around cloisters adjoining to south of nave, with octagonal chapter house adjoining south east angle of south transept. Walls survive only to lower courses, apart from south end of south transept and sections adjoining. Inner face of south wall of south transept has lower section of filleted shafts of south respond to east arcade and blind arcading with geometrical tracery. Adjoining to south is a narrow corridor-room, perhaps a parlour, with blank arcading and quadripartite rib-vaulting. To south of this are. remains of a rib-vaulted vestibule with shafted pointed arch to chapter house. Latter has two north west bays standing to full height and portions of two adjoining, with moulded plinth and sections of two buttresses; stone bench and blind arcading to inner walls with very fine geometrical tracery. For plan and detailed description see DoE (AMHB) guidebook, Thornton Abbey, 1978; N Pevsner and J Harris, The Buildings of England: Lincolnshire, 1978, 402-3; NMR.
Listing NGR: TA1183718950
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
- Legacy System number:
- 165879
- Legacy System:
- LBS
Sources
Books and journals
Thornton Abbey Guidebook, (1978)
Pevsner, N, Harris, J, Antram, N, The Buildings of England: Lincolnshire, (1989), 402-403
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 30-Jun-2026 at 00:32:18.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.