This palace was leased to a succession of nobles, and in the early 1600s was in the possession of Edward Lord Wotton , who employed John Tradescant the elder , to lay out formal gardens around it. This palace is thought to have survived until a great storm in 1703, which certainly caused great damage to the already ruinous structure of the abbey. Now a World Heritage Site , the ruins of this important monastic foundation built by Saint Augustine are in the care of English Heritage . Today the ruin precincts cover a substantial area east of the cathedral, and in fact, in its heyday the abbey's church rivalled nearby Canterbury Cathedral in size. The foundations of the main abbey building are located at 51°16′41.26″N 1°5′17.54″E

Ouch, started with typo - St. Augustine Abbey, of course. It was first established centre of Christianty in England, now in ruins short walk outside walls of Canterbury City. Even when we can see mostly just heaps of ruin a rugged outlines of former abbey and its church, it si nice place to visit, walk around, listen to stories of past on audioguide and think about roots and branches, origin and fruits, past glory and present struggles - and lasting testimony of this place nad cathedral not so much far away. And about what happened and what they signify to this day.