Welcome to the Alton Abbey Homepage

The abbey bookshop and church

All who arrive as guests are to be welcomed like Christ, for he is going to say, "I was a stranger and you welcomed me" Rule of St Benedict 53:1

Alton Abbey from its groundsAlton Abbey is a Benedictine Monastery in the Church of England, in the beautiful Hampshire village of Beech, just outside Alton. It has been described in The Times as "the best-kept secret in the Church of England" and "the place to go when you need six weeks holiday but can only spare a day."

On these pages you will find:

 

Welcome! this page last updated 9 Oct 2005 - I'm sorry the Monks are not the world's greatest correspondents so some of this info may be out of date - but I've been sent the 2006 Retreats programme so putting this up.

You can Contact Alton Abbey

By phone on 01420-562145/563575 or by Fax on 01420-561691 

Or write to ALTON ABBEY, ALTON, HAMPSHIRE, GU34 4AP UK . If you need a reply please enclose a Stamped Addressed Envelope.

They had an email address but this seems not to work. . I can relay EMails to them by fax if sent to nb [at] starcourse.org. (I am writing this out to avoid spammers) - mark this for attention of the Abbey or Dom Nicholas or Abbot Giles or whoever.  It is a long time since I have had a reply by fax to an email so best assume that this won't happen - telephone if you want a response.

Abbot Giles Hill OSBA Message from Abbot Giles

Many lives are so busy and frantic, that we rarely allow ourselves time.

To arrive at Alton Abbey is to enter the wilderness and to listen to what God is saying to you; to enjoy His peace and love for each and every one of us.

My brethren and I look forward to welcoming you to our home.

(Back To Top) 

Background

What is the Community for?

The Benedictine Community at Alton accepts the privileged responsibility to pray for mankind and to live the life of the Gospel following the precepts of the Rule of St Benedict .

How may I share the life of the Community?

How may I help the Community?

Back To Top Members of the Commuity

Links with other Communities

The Abbey has close links with the worldwide family of Benedictine Communities. Although most of these are part of the Roman Catholic Church it has long been universally agreed amongst Benedictines that the Worldwide Anglican and Lutheran brethren are also true Benedictines.

There are especially close relations with two communities:

There are many other Anglican religious communities, and numerous other Benedictine communities in England, both Anglican and Roman Catholic with all of whom the Abbey maintains friendly relations.
The Star Course Diocese of Winchester Church of England Links from Sacred Heart Convent Monastery of Christ in the Desert
Retreats Members of the Community (Back To Top)  Assumption Abbey ND Jane Austen Society

History

Alton Abbey has been in existence since 1895 as a community of men following the Benedictine way of life in the Church of England. The community itself was founded on work among merchant seamen in foreign seaports undertaken by Fr. Charles Plomer Hopkins, which began about a decade earlier. Father Hopkins was instrumental in settling the great Seamen's strike of 1911-12 and served as one of the members of the National Maritime Board; he was rewarded for his labours by King George V who in 1920 invested him as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

Since the death of Fr Hopkins in 1922, the community's work has gradually developed a greater emphasis on the monastic rather than the active apostolate, with the Liturgy of the Hours at the core of the communal life. The work with the mercantile marine has been continued as a charitable trust through the Seamen's Friendly Society.

The Abbey itself was built by the monks with their own hands, under the guidance of the distinguished architect Sir Charles Nicholson. Because it was originally involved in looking after retired seafarers it has 23 guest-rooms and a Guest-house and cottages.

(Back To Top) 

The Times Review

we'd like to get permission from The Times to include the review of Alton Abbey of 11 Feb 1995 by their Religious Correspondent Ruth Gledhill.

In the meantime here are some extracts:

(Back To Top) 

Retreats

There are organised retreats (some of which are Jane Austen Retreats or Icon Retreats) and it is also possible to make your own retreat or to use the Abbey for a group retreat.

Contact the Guestmaster Dom Nicholas for details and arrangements.

Organised Retreats

There are several organised retreats in each year. The principal types are:

Experience has shown the Abbey that it is better not to publish the schedule on the web at present - people should write to the Guestmaster or ring him and then he can discuss your requirements and together you can discern individually the schedule that is right for you.

Retreat places are limited, so it is advisable to check for places before booking.

Ring the Guestmaster Dom Nicholas on 01420-562145 for the latest information.
 
(Back To Top)  Dom Nicholas on Jane Austen Icons at Alton Abbey Star Course

Jane Austen

Jane Austen is widely considered the greatest novelist in the English Language.

From 1809 to her death in 1817 she lived with her mother and sister in a house in Chawton, which is now preserved as an independent museum. There she wrote Mansfield Park, Emma and Persuasion, and revised Sense & Sensibility, Pride & Prejudice, and Northanger Abbey.

Chawton is within walking distance of Alton Abbey, one of whose monks is a major expert on Jane Austen. For many years he has been running Jane Austen Retreats, enabling people to explore the spiritual depth of Jane's writing. Some of his writings on Jane can be found here.
Brittanica Article Jane Austen Society  Retreats Dom Nicholas on Jane Austen
(back to top)

Members of the Community

As far as I know there are currently six members of the Community: Abbot Giles Hill, Prior William Hughes, Dom Andrew Johnson, Fr Nicholas Seymour, Dom Anselm Shobrook, Fr Timothy Bavin.   Dom Peter Roundhill (who celebrated the 60th anniversary of his profession in April 1999, and who served as Prior from 1959-1964) died on 29 Dec 1999. You can click on any one of them for a picture, or you can see them all by clicking here.

In addition the community has about 70 Oblates, who are lay people living in their normal parish communities in a spiritual affiliation with the Abbey.

The Episcopal Visitor is The Rt Revd Michael Scott-Joynt, Bishop of Winchester.
(Back To Top)  Diocese of Winchester Homepage Icons from Dom Anselm Dom Nicholas on Jane Austen Retreats

The Hours of the Community

The timetable for the monks is as follows. Visitors are welcome to join in any of the services, but there is no compulsion to do so!

Weekdays

05:30am  The Vigil followed by Meditation until 6:30
07:15  Morning Prayer 
08:00  Breakfast 
09:00  Conventual Mass 
followed by coffee (in the Conference Room) 
12:00 noon  Midday prayer 
12:15  Dinner (silent) 
4:00pm  Tea 
5:00pm Evening Prayer 
6:00pm  Supper (silent) 
8:00pm Personal Prayer (Mon-Fri) Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament (Sat)
8:30  Night Prayer 

Sundays & Solemnities

As on weekdays except
10:00am  Conventual Mass 
1:00pm  Dinner 

no Afternoon Tea 
7:30  Night Prayer 

Occasionally, the Service times vary from this pattern. Check for changes on the board inside the Shop Entrance

(Back To Top)  Diocese of Winchester Homepage Icons from Dom Anselm Dom Nicholas on Jane Austen Retreats

How to get there

You can easily get to Alton by train (whence it is a short taxi-ride to the Abbey) and to Alton Abbey by car.

Click here to see where the Abbey is on the map - you can Zoom in and out.

(Back To Top)

Other Interesting Links