By Harold Bralcspcar, F.S.A. 551 



Meaux, wliere there was already a gate-house chapel, another was 

 begun to be built over the gate-house, during the abbacy of Adam 

 of Skyrne (1310—39), but was never fiuished,i and so much as was 

 built was pulled down by his successor Hugh de Leveni (1339—49). 

 At Stanley there are some marks of buildings on the east side of the 

 great gate which may be remains of the gate-house chapel, though 

 apparently they are those of a larger building, possibly the almonry 

 with accommodation for inferior guests. A long wall ran from the 

 inner gate-house up to the south-west angle of the church,^ which 

 with the west ditch of the precinct enclosed the great outer court 



of the abbey. 



In this outer court were placed the houses for guests, with stables 

 for their horses and a forge, the granary, bake-liouse, malt-house, 

 brewery, and other offices.^ 



On the east side of the outer court, towards the north, was the 

 principal group of buildings around the cloister. Owing to the 

 alope of the ground from south to north the church was on 

 the south side of the cloister ; the dorter, over the chapter-house, 

 parlour, and novices' lodging, on the east; the warndng-house, 

 frater, and kitchen on the north; and the cellarer's building, 

 separated from the cloister by a court, on the west. Eastward of 

 these buildings was the monks' infirmary, which with its garden 

 occupied the space up to the inner ditches on the east. The 

 cemetery seems to have been on the east and south sides of the 



church. 



The main drain of the abbey started from the west end of the 

 ditch, which runs westward from the middle of the east side of the 

 preciiict, and was taken northward about 120 feet under some of 

 the infirmary buildings, at which point it appears to have turned 

 at right-angles, and passing under the north ends of the claustral 

 buildings, emptied into the north ditch at its we st end. The first 



• Chronica de Melsa (Rolls Series, 1866), iii., 36. 

 « This is clearly seen in the railway bank. 

 3 The northern end of this court is now covered by a farmyard, and two 

 cottages with their gardens, none of which retain anything ancient except the 

 foundation of a wall under the north wall of the gardens. 



