Dating from 1758 the Rievaulx Terrace and Temples are among the most beautiful and imaginative achievements of 18th century landscaping.
The grass-covered terrace follows a serpentine course for half a mile across the side of a wooded escarpment overlooking the ruins of Rievaulx Abbey. The Cistercians founded the abbey in this secluded valley beside the river Rye in 1358.
Swathes cut through the hanging wood reveal dramatic views of the abbey ruins and Rye valley far below and across to Ryedale and the Hambleton Hills.
In the spring and summer wild flowers fill the terrace and the adjoining woods.
At either end of the terrace rise little Palladian temples and these, with the wooded hillside and the authentic ruins, bring to life a romantic Italian landscape.
The creator of Rievaulx was Thomas Ducombe III who inherited the property and the adjoining Helmsley estate from his father in 1747. He wanted to complement, if not surpass, the more formal terrace and temples laid out in about 1730 by his grandfather at Duncombe Park a mile across the valley.
Thomas Ducombe may have been intended to join the two terraces by a scenic drive above the river but the project was never carried out.
The temples were probably designed by the gentleman-architect Sir Thomas Robinson, who produced spectacular work at Claydon House.
At the south-east end of the terrace is the delicate domed Doric or Tuscan Temple. This rotunda is considered to be a scaled down version of the Mausoleum at Castle Howard a few miles away.
Built of dressed sandstone, the temple is surrounded by a colonnade of unfluted Doric columns. It carries a Doric entablature but the columns have no base. The interior is decorated with an elaborate white plaster trellis which stands out vividly against the blue of the dome. This may have been the work of Giuseppe Cortese who was employed at Studley. The tessellated pavement floor came from the choir of Rievaulx Abbey.
At the far north-west of the terrace stands the rectangular Ionic Temple, inspired by the Temple of Fortuna Virilis in Rome. This building was also constructed with of dressed sandstone and stands on a high podium. The imposing portico has six Ionic columns and a pediment. A rather plain, classical exterior leads to a richly decorated interior with superb frescoes by Giuseppe Borgnis and carvings in gold leaf.
Above the panelled dado there is ornamental plasterwork and the room has an elaborate cornice and a fine painted ceiling. The temple was intended as a banqueting house and the central table is still set for a meal. The contents of this elegant room include William Kent settees, George II console tables and a magnificent Worcester dinner service. The basement housed the kitchen and living quarters and today there is an exhibition here on English landscape design in the 18th century.
Thomas Duncombe's descendant the 3rd and last Earl of Feversham died in 1963 and in 1972 the Rievaulx Terrace, Temples and the adjoining woods were purchased by the National Trust.
Rievaulx Abbey is in the care of English Heritage.
Rievaulx Abbey Terrace Opening Times2008: 15 Mar-30 Sep: 11:00-18:00 Mon-Sun; Oct-2 Nov: 11:00-17:00 Mon-Sun. Last entry 1hr before close. Ionic Temple closed 13:00-14:00
Tel: 01439 798340 (Summer) 01439 748283 (Winter) Rievaulx Abbey Terrace Website
