Berkshire History for Kids: Abbot's House

Where the Man in Charge Lived

This was the home of the Abbot. He lived there in luxury.
It was so posh that it was sometimes called a palace.
The abbot was a very important man, not just locally but nationally.
He was a business man in charge of lots of farms. The Abbot of Abingdon Abbey had his own office or Chequer Hall which is still there today.
The abbot often had to entertain important guests at his house, including Kings and Queens. They could not stay in the hospitium.
The abbot ate in his hall, not in the refectory. He had his own servants to wait on him.
His meals were brought from the abbey kitchen which stood nearby. Sometimes the abbot had his own kitchen.
The Abbot's House at Reading Abbey was so nice that King Henry VIII turned it into a Royal palace after the Dissolution.