The Order of Cistercians has for the past century supplanted the Benedictine Congregation of Cluny as the most powerful order and the chief religious influence in western Europe.
The emphasis of Cistercian life is on manual labor and self-sufficiency, and many abbeys support themselves through activities such as agriculture and brewing ales.
Beaulieu Abbey, a Cistercian abbey located in Hampshire, England, is founded in 1203-1204 by King John and (uniquely in Britain) peopled by thirty monks sent from the abbey of Cîteaux in France, the mother house of the Cistercian order since its foundation in 1098.
The Latin name of the monastery is Bellus Locus Regis ('The beautiful place of the king').
