This nunnery was founded in the 13th century by Ela, Countess of Salisbury, who was married to William Longespee, the powerful and illegitimate son of Henry II. It was converted into a house in Henry VIII's reign and in 1827 became the home of photographer, William Fox Talbot, the inventor of the negative-positive process. In 1944 the Talbots gave the property to the National Trust and descendants of the family remain as tenants in the Abbey. Two of the early Harry Potter movies were filmed in the Abbey.