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Beaulieu

The Cloisters: Management and Scholarship

Situated to the south of the Church to catch the sun, the Cloisters were the hub of the Abbey complex. Cistercian abbeys were all built to the same plan. At their heart were the Cloisters, an open plot enclosed on all four sides by broad covered arcades.

It was here that monks whose duties rarely led them beyond the Abbey wall took their exercise, probably no more than a brisk stroll. Those who wished to study or sit in contemplation could use the specially provided carrels , which were also used by those reading works taken from the main bookcase. The monks had no private apartments, but privacy was not a feature of medieval life and it is unlikely that they would feel any constraints in living communally.

The administ ration and academic work of the Abbey were centred on rooms opening off the Cloisters. The Chapter House was the headquarters of the Abbot and his senior monks, whilst in the Monk's Scriptorium the copying of religious texts and illumination took place. O neunique item of their work survives, the Account Book of Beaulieu Abbey, kept between September 1269 and September 1270. Accounts were usually presented orally and it is possible that the Book was kept to be used later as a comparative check on the Abbey's economic activities. Today it can be found in the British Library.

Other rooms opening from the Cloisters include the Vestry, which housed the church plate, ecclesiastical vestments and furnishings not in everyday use, the Choir Monks Dormitory, the Warming house and the Monks' Lavatorium immediately outside the Refectory. The Abbey also had an extensive Estate outside its walls.

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