Abbey Habit

AT the far end of Kenilworth old town, away from the castle, are the ruins of St Mary's Abbey.

It was founded as a priory in 1119 by Geoffrey de Clinton, chamberlain and treasurer to Henry I, who, as his fortunes increased, also built Kenilworth Castle.

The priory was upgraded to an abbey in 1447, but was secularised less than a century later in Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries.

Most of the buildings were dismantled, and only a few ruins remain.

The 14th-century gatehouse, which originally had another storey

Another view of the gatehouse, with St Nicholas's Church in the background