Place Name
Bordesley Abbey was founded in the 12thCentury near the town of Redditch, in Worcestershire, for a Cistercian order of monks. The abbey’s foundation was an act of Waleran de Beaumont, Count of Meulan, who gave the monks of Garendon Abbey in Leicestershire more land. However, Empress Matilda laid claim to the patronage of Bordesley once Waleran surrendered to her in about 1141, thus making Bordesley a royal house. It was once an important local ecclesiastical centre, holding political control of the ancient township of Tardebigge. However, it was demolished by Henry VIII during the dissolution of the monasteries in 1538 and the property was sold. The ruins are now an archaeological site. Like many of the roads on the St Helier’s estate this is named after British monasteries and abbeys in remembrance of the area’s historic ownership by Westminster Abbey. The road names are in alphabetical order, of which Aberconway Road in the north west of the estate is first.
