A Short Account of Romsey Abbey is the Rev. Thomas Perkins’s contribution to the Bell’s Cathedrals series, describing the fabric and history of the fine Norman abbey church in Hampshire. Perkins traces the building’s origins as a convent of nuns dedicated to SS. Mary and Ethelfleda, and details its sturdy Romanesque architecture, which survives largely intact.
The book guides the reader through the nave, transepts, and notable features of the church, explaining its construction and its place in the history of English monasticism. Concise and carefully observed, it serves both as a record and as a companion for the visitor. For those interested in Norman architecture and the parish churches that were once great monastic foundations, Perkins offers a clear and informative account.