Lee Abbey
| Lee Abbey | |
| Devon | |
|---|---|
 Lee Abbey | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SS697492 |
| Location: | 51°13’40"N, 3°51’59"W |
| Village: | Lynton |
| History | |
| Built 1850s | |
| Country house | |
| Information | |
| Owned by: | The Lee Abbey Movement |
| Website: | https://leeabbey.org.uk/ |
Lee Abbey is a country house above the cliffs of the north coast of Devon which serves as an ecumenical Christian community.[1] As a community retreat it was founded in 1946.
The house stands a mile to the west of Lynton, on the little, cliff-girt headland above Woody Bay.[2] It is a Grade II listed building.[3] The South West Coast Path, a long-distance walking route, runs past the house along the cliff-top road.
The first building on the site may have been a farmhouse built by Cistercian abbots of Forde Abbey around 1200. The current Gothic buildings are from the 1850s. In the 1920s it was bought and used unsuccessfully as a hotel. During the Second World War, a boys' school was evacuated to Lee Abbey. After the war the dilapidated buildings were bought for use as a Christian retreat and extensive building work took place in the 1950s.[2]
Lee Abbey and its satellites
The house is owned by The Lee Abbey Movement, a registered charity.[4] It offers retreats, group weekends and Christian family holidays.[5]
The community also has accommodation in London.[6] Lee Abbey also has two smaller intentional Christian communities in urban areas: the small missional communities in Aston, Birmingham and Knowle West in Bristol.
References
- ↑ Perfect holidays on offer up and down England – Church of England Newspaper
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 History of the buildings - Lee Abbey
- ↑ National Heritage List 1201135: Lee Abbey
- ↑ The Lee Abbey Movement - Registered Charity no. 1094098 at the Charity Commission
- ↑ Lee Abbey: Christian retreats, holidays and conferences
- ↑ Lee Abbey London