Romsey - Abbey

The massive abbey, looking from a distance more like a fortress than a church, was founded in 907 in association with a convent of Benedictine nuns by Elfleda, the granddaughter of Alfred the Great. A Norman church was built in about 1125, and most of the present building is pure Norman. The east window is Early English (early 14th century), while the west end, with pointed arches, was built in about 1225. The north transept contains a painted wooden reredos of 1520, the lower half of which portrays the Resurrection, the upper part the Abbess of Romsey. High above the choir arch are two figures of angels which probably formed part of a Crucifixion group. In the southern choir aisle and outside the south transept are two Saxon stone crucifixes.