The abbey of Saints Peter and Paul, which is situated outside
the eastern walls of the City of Canterbury, is the oldest
Anglo-Saxon abbey in England. It was founded by St Augustine
and King Aethelbert in about 598 and from its earliest years
was intended as a burial place for the archbishops of Canterbury
and the kings of Kent. As it housed the monks sent from Roman
for the conversion of the English, it became a great centre
of learning.
After the chaos of the Viking invasions, it re-emerged in
the tenth century as the only surviving monastery in Kent,
since all the others had been destroyed by the invaders. In
978 a new enlarged abbey church was re-dedicated by Archbishop
Dunstan to 'Saints Peter and Paul and St Augustine of England'.
The foundations of
the original church lay under the nave of the later abbey. To
the east was the chapel of St Mary, destroyed in the making
of the later crypt. In 1055 these two small buildings were joined
by an octagonal tower into one larger church. Further east again
was the chapel of St Pancras, the only pre-conquest structure
to survive in part above ground until the dissolution.
Opening Timings
24 Mar-30 Sep: 10:00 - 18:00
1 Oct-31 Mar: 10:00 - 16:00
(closed Mon & Tue)
Closed: 24-26 Dec & 1 Jan
Directions
By Rail: Canterbury East,
Canterbury West
By Bus: 14A, 23, 25A, 113
By Road: In Longport ¼ mile East of Cathedral Close
Contact Info
St. Augustines Abbey
Longport
Canterbury
CT1 1TF
England
