The building of the 19th Century St Augustine's Abbey, designed by
Augustus Pugin, was begun in 1844. It forms part of a complex of
Grade I listed buildings designed by the architect, who also built
his home there.
It is widely regarded as a key building of the Catholic revival
in England, with additional significance because of its location,
close to where theologian and philosopher St Augustine landed in AD
597.
Augustus Pugin built his house “The Grange” in
1843-4 to live in with his family. He built it to live out his idea
of life in a medieval, Catholic community, in buildings executed in
the Gothic style of so-called pointed architecture. His vision was
of a family home nestling in the shadow of a benevolent monastery
and he bought enough land to erect St Augustine's Priory next door.
The event of his early death at the age of 40 meant that his son,
Edward (an architect in his own right), was to complete the
monastery and its church, still home to a thriving Benedictine
community.
Please note this cache is located at ground level, so may not be
accessible to wheelchair users.
Congratulations to Pie's Pipers FTF