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Milton Abbey |
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The abbey lies tucked away in an idyllic part of the country that forms the next valley west of Winterborne Houghton and approximately 8 miles southwest of Blandford. It is located between the villages of Milborne St.Andrew and Hilton. A church has stood here for over a thousand years, the original collegiate church having been founded c. 933 AD by King Athelstan of Wessex, a grandson of King Alfred. |
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One of the more notable events in the recent history of the Abbey was the action of the owner Joseph Damer in destroying the thriving village of Middleton adjacent to the Abbey and removing the inhabitants to the present location of Milton Abbas. This took place between 1765 and 1779 and was carried out to increase the privacy of the owner. Milton House, a Gothic mansion, was built by Damer at about this time to complement the Abbey. In 1852 the estate was sold to Baron Hambro, a merchant banker who commissioned Sir George Gilbert Scott to retore the Abbey Church in 1865, thereby saving it from ruin. Trees and shrubs were planted by Capability Brown at about this time. In 1953, the grounds were bought by a trust to establish the present school. Events: Daily services. Concerts during the August bank holiday period sung by the Milton Abbey Music Festival chorus. Milton Abbey Music Festival Phone: 01929 406170
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