RIEVAULX ABBEY RUINS

The ruined Rievaulx Abbey in North Yorkshire, an English Heritage property. This was one of the earliest Cistercian abbeys to be founded in England. The first buildings were of wood in 1131-2 although in 1135/6 the stone structures were started. Expansion and remodelling continued through the next few hundred years until the Dissolution and sale to the Earl of Rutland in 1538 who stripped the buildings leaving a ruin behind.

GATHERING STORM

This is the keep-like East Tower at Helmsley Castle in North Yorkshire, now in the care of English Heritage. The castle was begun in the 1100s but this tower was erected in the 1200s. The photo was taken on a sunny day but the clouds were gathering. Luckily, though, the brewing storm never materialised, the clouds passed and the sun came out again.