brown brick building under blue sky

Kirkstall Abbey; Leeds; Cistercian Monks; West Yorkshire; Leeds Landmarks; Leeds City Council; Abbey was home to a community of Cistercian monks and lay brothers. After its dissolution in 1539 the abbey's windows; roofs and much of the stonework were steadily removed for use in local building projects and this helps explain its current partially-ruined appearance. Nevertheless; Kirkstall is still preferred by many historians to other Cistercian abbeys such as those found at Fountains and Rievaulx.; The Church: The Cloisters form one of the most tranquil corners of Leeds; a square with covered