Page 20 - Illustrated Reditch History

The Monks Arrive

Work on Bordesley Abbey began on Tuesday, 22
September 1138, when a group of white-robed
monks, probably about a dozen in number, came the
60 miles from Garenden Abbey and arrived at
Bordesley. Imagine the scene:
Their horse-drawn carts would be lined up, piled high
with spades, barrows and tools of every description.
The monks would be shouting to one another and the
horses would be fidgeting and neighing, needing a
rest and a feed. In front of them was a treacherous
patch of swampy ground, set on the edge of a great
oak forest. This is where they were going to build! It
was fortunate that Cistercian monks were dedicated
to hard work!
Five main abbeys or monasteries were built in
Worcestershire, at Worcester, Pershore, Malvern,
Evesham, and Bordesley. They were all Benedictine
monasteries except Bordesley which was a Cistercian
abbey. The Cistercians were very strict. They believed
that statues and carvings took your mind off God and
A Cistercian monk wore
so their architecture is plain and simple. The
Benedictine monks wore black habits (long, loose a white robe.
gowns), while the Cistercians wore white, but with a
black sleeveless overall when working on the land.
Each day in the life of a monk was divided into three
parts, worship, study and work on the land. Manual
labour was an important part of their lives. The monks
were not allowed to leave the abbey but they could
not build an abbey by themselves, they needed to get
some help. They were joined by Lay Brothers. These
were people who came along but did not want to
become a monk. Some were strong men, labourers,
who could help with digging and carting. The monks
also needed to recruit people with special skills, such
as stonemasons, carpenters, architects and metal
workers
The Lay Brothers wore brown cloaks to distinguish
them from the monks. They could, if they wish, attend
special the services in the church. Some of them lived
in the abbey but in a different part to the monks.
Others lived in the community, for example, the abbey
had about 20 farms and many of these were run by
Lay Brothers. Hewell Grange, now the prison, was one A Lay Brother wore a
of their farms. brown robe and could

go outside the Abbey.
20
20