Built in the 11th century as Chapter House and Church of the Abbey, by the 18th century most parts of the original buildings were in ruins. According to Hasted, Frazer Honeywood bought the estate in 1740 and incorporated parts of the ruins into his house design, re-using the original building materials in other areas. The Chapter House, reconstructed in the 13th century, and part of the dorter range were shown as a roofless ruin in a drawing of 1735. The present "medieval timbered roof" has been re-erected. There is a crypt or cellar beneath the Chapter House. Stone coffins with ornate crosses on the lids were found near the transept. They probably represented burials of former abbesses. Today the east and south ranges of the 18th century house are the living quarters of the Anglican Benedictine sisters. See also TQ 65 NE 48