[1] Gerald of Wales claimed that the first Abbot Adam was a devious individual intent on acquiring property by any means, fair or foul.

[2] During the early 13th century, the abbey expanded its land holdings, particularly through the acquisition of good quality farmland in the area granted to them by King John in 1216.

[1] Large parts of the 12th- and 13th-century buildings, including the north and south transepts and the interior columns, together with some tiles, wooden fittings and fragments of stained glass, remain in place today, incorporated into the later church.

The building also houses two 13th-century effigies, thought to be those of a later Lord Robert of Ewyas and his half-brother Roger de Clifford (d.1286), and carved stone roof bosses.

The building was bought by a local landowner, John Scudamore, a member of a gentry family historically connected with Owain Glyndŵr.

The original nave was blocked off and a new tower erected, and a new carved oak rood screen, incorporating the arms of Scudamore, Laud, and King Charles I, was made by John Abel of Hereford.