Tintern Abbey excavation suggests poor people were later buried alongside lords

Archaeologists surprised to find graves of ordinary locals in place known as final resting place of rich and powerful

In the heyday of the wonderful church, it was used as the final resting place for the rich and powerful: high-ranking clergy, wealthy landowners, lords who guarded the borderlands.

But excavation work carried out at Tintern Abbey has found that after the gothic masterpiece fell into ruin following the dissolution of the monasteries, ordinary local people took advantage of the chance to bury their dead within the sacred – and beautiful – grounds.