Forde Abbey was founded as a Cistercian monastery at around 1150 close to the River Axe, and it continued as such for the next 400 years until the Dissolution of monasteries under Henry V111 when it was handed over to the Crown. After that there have been a succession of owners, many absentee landlords, until 1905 when the property was acquired by the Roper family who have owned it since. They have been responsible for most of the developments in the house and grounds that make it such a pleasure to visit today.