The first monastery was founded during the reign of King Cnut in 1018. It was a Benedictine monastery following the ‘Regularis Concordia’ of 970 which was drawn up for all the Benedictine monasteries in England. It was a small, unprosperous monastery which King Stephen gave to the Abbot of Savigny who established the Savignac rule at Buckfast.

In 1147 Buckfast joined the Cistercian order and the whole monastery was rebuilt in stone. By the fifteenth century Buckfast had become a wealthy landowner. It ran its own guest hall, almshouse and school; maintained its parishes and manors; and established fairs and markets to encourage local trade. This all ended in 1539 with Henry V111’s Dissolution of the monastery and the buildings fell into disrepair.

The site was bought by Samuel Berry who cleared the rubble and built a mansion house retaining the Abbot’s Tower and the twelfth century Undercroft. Four subsequent owners ensued ; the last offering the site for sale to a religious community. French monks who had been exiled from La Pierre-qui-Vire were looking for a new home, purchased it and took up residence in 1882.
In 1883 whilst digging the garden they unearthed the foundations of the original Cistercian monastery which enabled the architect, Frederick Walters, to use this as the template for the design of a new monastery. The monks remained part of their original Community until 1899 when they were granted independent status. In 1902 it finally became an Abbey.

The first Abbot was Boniface Natter who was blessed as Abbot on 24th February, 1903, exactly 365 years after the closure of the medieval Abbey. Sadly, he perished in a shipwreck and Anscar Vonier, who had survived the sinking. was elected Abbot and vowed to make the rebuilding of the Abbey his life’s work. The monks undertook the building work which was executed piecemeal upon the receipt of donations. On 25th August, 1932 the Abbey church was consecrated to much acclaim nationally with the BBC broadcasting the service live. By 1938 the entire building was complete and shortly afterwards Abbot Anscar Vonier died having seen the realisation of his dream.

In 1960 the Buckfast Community joined the English Benedictine Congregation. Since then it has undertaken various projects with an emphasis on hospitality and evangelisation . 2018 saw a range of celebrations to mark its Millennium. It continues to attract tourists from all over the world and the Liturgy has been enhanced by the development of its choir.