Mount Grace Priory

They’ve done a lot of tree felling around Mount Grace Priory, opening up new views of the ruined 14th-century Carthusian Priory. The monks lived in silent isolation, in cells around the two cloisters. To the right of the church is the larger cloister which incorporates sixteen cells. On the extreme right is a modern reconstruction of one of these cells. An angled opening beside the door of each cell allowed food and water to be passed through without the monks coming into contact with the laymen. Food was entirely vegetarian and the monks only came out of their cells for prayers and worship in the church. The priory was abolished in 1539 after the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII. Mount Grace Priory is a National Trust property managed by English Heritage.