Located on the East Sussex/ Kent border, Bayham Old Abbey was founded circa 1207 by the unification of two small Premonstratensian houses from Otham (Sussex) and Brockley (Kent). The Premonstratensian order were known as the White Canons due to the colour of their habits.

The abbey was supressed in 1525, before the Dissolution of the Monasteries, by Cardinal Wolsey as he sought to raise funds for two of his new colleges. Henry VIII later took control and sold it off.

The ruins were partially adapted in the late 18th century, to provide a picturesque focal point during landscaping for the new Bayham Old Abbey House.