Milton Abbey School - The Abbey Church

The Abbey Church

The Abbey forms the central heart of the school. A Chapel service takes place for the whole school twice a week. On Monday there is a House Assembly and Wednesday a whole school Assembly. On Sundays the whole school gathers for a formal Sunday worship, and there are regular communion services throughout the term. The School, although a Church of England foundation, welcomes people of any faith, and also of none.

The abbey church is built in a mixture of Ham stone, Chilmark stone and flint and consists only of the choir, central tower and transepts. Its style is mostly Decorated Gothic dating from the mid-14th century with some 15th-century details in the tower and north transept. The eastern Lady Chapel was demolished after the suppression and some alterations were made by Wyatt in the late 18th century. The Earl and Countess of Dorchester were also generous to the church, and their joint tomb, designed by Robert Adam with sculpture by Agostino Carlini, is to be found in the north transept. Perhaps the most striking feature of the church's interior, however, is its south window, designed as a Tree of Jesse by Augustus Pugin. Other features of interest are the 14th century pulpitum and sedilia, the 15th century reredos and pyx canaopy, and the 16th century monument to John Tregonwell.