St Augustine’s Monastery, Canterbury. Until quite recently it was said to be the oldest monastery in England, but in the 1960s excavations at Beckery Chapel near Glastonbury showed that that one was much older – early 5th century burials have been identified.
St Augustine’s Abbey was, according to tradition, founded in 598, following Augustine’s mission from Rome to convert the Anglo-Saxons. King Ethelbert, a pagan, was married to a Christian, but Augustine converted him, and he gave the site of the monastery for the use of monks. It was originally dedicated to Peter and Paul. Important burials include early kings of Kent, Bishops and Archbishops, Augustine himself, and Saint Mildred, a saint noted for her miracles.
Earliest monasteries page 1