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Archaeologists find ‘missing link’ in history of Fountains Abbey

In reality, archaeologists have revealed, Fountains Abbey near Ripon was as busy, noisy and industrialised as anywhere in 12th- and 13th-century Britain.

It is Britain’s biggest and most famous monastic ruin and one that conjures up bucolic images of peace, reflection and very little noise apart, perhaps, from the occasional waft of Gregorian chanting.

The National Trust has announced the discovery of the foundations of a medieval tannery at the abbey, part of a world heritage site. Experts were astonished.

“This really is a wonderful discovery, it is very important,” said Mark Newman, a trust archaeologist. Fountains is probably the most investigated Cistercian abbey in Britain, “so when you discover a major building on this scale, that was completely unknown … you don’t get many of those in a career.”

Newman said many assumed there was nothing more to be discovered about Fountains but one puzzle had always been what a long, bowling alley-type extension, close to the River Skell, was used for.

Ground-penetrating radar has made discoveries of previously unknown monastic buildings, including one 16 metres wide and 32 metres long. They have lined pits and tanks around them. These and the close proximity to water have led to the firm conclusion that it is the remains of a tannery, a place for producing materials for clothing, belts, bedding and book bindings.

It is the scale of the tannery and how close it is to the monks that has further surprised archaeologists. “A tannery of this size, spanning such a large area of the site, reveals an operation on an industrial scale,” said Newman.

A medieval tannery was a horrible place. Animal skins and hides would first have hooves and horns removed before they were washed to remove dung, dirt and blood. Fat, hair and flesh were then removed, usually by being submerged into a lime or urine solution and being scraped with knives.

Newman said the noise, activity and stench of tanneries had led to an assumption it would be sited much further away from monks and their worship. “We see now that the tannery was much closer and a far cry from the idea of a quiet, tranquil abbey community,” he said.

Newman said people would have been astonished at the number of people who lived and worked so industriously at Fountains, with Cistercian monks being “the first ones to apply themselves to these industrial scales of living and managing the landscape”.

He said the findings also showed the importance of lay brothers at the site. Lay brothers were not literate, like the monks, and were often recruited to do the more physical jobs. That left monks more time to study, pray and worship.

The lay brothers, considered “separate but equal” to monks, were provided with weatherproof animal skin capes for outdoor work and slept under sheepskins. “Fountains recruited hundreds of lay brothers in its early decades, all of whom needed to be equipped this way,” said Newman. “This tannery provided the means for that.”

He said though he was taken aback by the scale of the operations that had been discovered, it all made sense. The monks at Fountains were, by necessity, “pioneering farmers and land managers on an industrial scale”.

The radar research was carried out with partners including the University of Bradford. Chris Gaffney, a professor of archaeological sciences, said the technology provided “stunning, unexpected and intriguing glimpses” into life at the abbey.

The trust said it was the largest tannery discovered at a monastic site in Britain and was being seen as a kind of “missing link” in the history of the abbey, which operated from the early 12th century to 1539 and the dissolution of the monasteries.

“It is so easy with a place like Fountains to think this is exactly as the monks saw it,” said Newman. “What we are finding is that there is a whole unrecognised history.”

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Lagos sales manager remanded, accused of stealing N32.2m from boss

A 25-year-old sales manager, Olatunbosun Olarewaju, has been remanded in Ikoyi Prison after being accused of masterminding a shocking N32.2 million theft from his employer, just months after securing the job.

The police at Adeniji Adele Division, Lagos Island, said Olarewaju allegedly abused the trust of his boss, Mr Victor Ibe, by selling goods worth N32.2 million and diverting the proceeds into multiple personal accounts before disappearing.

According to police investigators, the lid was blown off the alleged scheme when Ibe conducted an audit and discovered a massive shortfall in stock value.

Acting swiftly, the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, launched an intelligence-driven manhunt that led to Olarewaju’s arrest at a hideout in Lagos.

Following the investigation led by Sergeant Abraham Friday, Olarewaju was arraigned before the Tinubu Magistrate’s Court, Lagos Island, on a two-count charge of conspiracy and stealing.

Prosecuting counsel, Inspector Ishola Samuel, told the court that the offences took place between August 2024 and April 14, 2025, at 23 Princess Street, Lagos Island.

He said Olarewaju, entrusted with managing and selling his employer’s goods, instead chose to divert millions of naira into his private coffers.

The offences, Samuel said, contravened Sections 411 and 287(7) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

Olarewaju, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Presiding Magistrate A.A. Paul granted him bail in the sum of N1 million, with two sureties in like sum, but ordered his remand at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre until he meets the conditions.

The case has been adjourned until May 27, 2025, for further mention.

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Military kills over 100 terrorists, rescue 21 hostages — DHQ

The Defence Headquarters, DHQ, has announced major successes in its ongoing counter-terrorism and anti-oil theft operations across Nigeria, with over 100 terrorists killed, 100 suspects arrested, and 21 kidnapped victims rescued between April 17 and 25, 2025.

Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Markus Kangye, disclosed the achievements in a statement on Friday.

Kangye noted that coordinated offensives across the North East, North West, North Central, South South, and South East regions yielded substantial results.

“In the North East, troops of Operation Hadin Kai launched aggressive offensives leading to the surrender of ISWAP/JAS elements and the elimination of dozens of terrorists,” Kangye said.

In the North West, troops under Operation Fagge Yamma neutralized several insurgents, arrested suspects, and rescued victims in Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi, and Katsina States.

In the North Central zone, Operations Safe Haven and Whirl Stroke also recorded significant success. Between April 18–22, troops acting on credible intelligence arrested over 37 criminal suspects in Plateau and Kaduna States.

In the South East, troops under Operation Udoka carried out successful raids in Imo, Enugu, Anambra, and Ebonyi States, killing terrorists, arresting suspects, and recovering arms and explosives. Notably, four kidnapped victims were rescued during these missions.

In the South South, troops of Operation Delta Safe targeted illegal refining sites and oil theft networks, destroying equipment and seizing crude oil and petroleum products worth over ₦94 million.

“Between April 18 and 22, troops made contact with terrorists in several communities, seizing weapons, mobile phones, motorcycles, and IEDs,” Kangye added

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Pope Francis Laid To Rest In Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica

This photo taken and handout on April 26, 2025 by The Vatican Media shows the rite of the burial of the coffin of Pope Francis at Santa Maria Maggiore basilica. (Photo by Handout / VATICAN MEDIA / AFP)

Pope Francis was buried inside his favourite Rome church after a funeral mass in St Peter’s Square, the Vatican said on Saturday.

Francis, who died on Monday aged 88, was laid to rest during a 30-minute ceremony which started at 1:00 pm (1100 GMT) at the Santa Maria Maggiore basilica in the Italian capital.

Footage shared by the Holy See showed cardinals marking his wooden and zinc coffin with red wax seals.

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, who as camerlengo is running the Vatican’s day-to-day affairs until a new pope is elected, sprinkled it with holy water after it was lowered into a tomb set inside an alcove.

A reproduction of the pectoral cross worn by Francis during his lifetime hung above it.

Francis had asked that the tomb, located near the altar of Saint Francis, be simple and unadorned, reflecting the humble spirit of his papacy.

The tombstone bears only the inscription “Franciscus” — the pope’s name in Latin.

Its marble is sourced from Liguria, the northwestern Italian region once home to the Argentine pontiff’s Italian ancestors.

Francis, born Jorge Bergoglio, had specified in his will the exact spot he wanted to be buried, in the side nave of the beloved fifth-century AD church.

The pontiff was devoted to the worship of the Virgin Mary and made a point of praying in Santa Maria Maggiore before leaving on trips abroad and upon his return to Rome.

He declared his desire to be entombed there in 2023.

Located in the heart of Rome, the basilica already holds the tombs of seven popes.

But the last one to be buried there was Clement IX in 1669. More recently, popes have usually been buried in St Peter’s Basilica.

One of four papal basilicas in Rome, Santa Maria Maggiore also holds the remains of several other renowned figures, such as the architect and sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who designed St Peter’s Square and its surrounding columns.

Built around 432 AD under Pope Sixtus III, the basilica holds some of the Catholic Church’s most important relics, including an icon of the Virgin Mary holding the baby Jesus, attributed to Saint Luke.

(Channels/AFP)