Monasteries were important in the Medieval era for a number of reasons
1. They were the libraries of the era. Monasteries were important repositories of books, especially prior to the invention of the printing press.
2. They were the printing presses of the era. Monks were often engaged in the tedious task of hand copying books to ensure their survival
3. They were a great place to offload extra children of the royals. Third and Fourth sons of Dukes and Earls would often get sent to Monasteries. This ensured orderly succession and a lack of battles over who should inherit.