Barbeau Abbey (french: Abbaye de Barbeau or Abbaye Notre-Dame de Barbeau;
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
: ''Barbelum'', ''Sequanae portus'', or ''Sacer portus'') is a former
Cistercian monastery in
Fontaine-le-Port in the French department of
Seine-et-Marne
Seine-et-Marne () is a department in the Île-de-France region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square kilometres (2,284 square miles); it roughly covers it ...
. It was located approximately 10 kilometers northeast of
Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau (; ) is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the ''arrondissement' ...
and 8 kilometers southeast of
Melun
Melun () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region, north-central France. It is located on the southeastern outskirts of Paris, about from the centre of the capital. Melun is the prefecture of the Seine-et-Mar ...
.
History
Barbeau Abbey was founded in 1147 by
King Louis VII of France on the banks of the
Seine
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, mouth_coordinates =
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, progression =
, river_system = Seine basin
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, tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle
, tributar ...
, whence the original name ''Seine-Port'', or ''Sequanae Portus'', in Latin. It was transferred to its present site in 1156. The present name is supposedly derived from the French word for
barbel, which is also depicted in the abbey's arms. According to the foundation legend a barbel was fished out of the Seine and found to contain a ring mounted with a precious stone that was lost by
Saint Loup as he crossed the river, the sale of which raised the funds to build the monastery.
In 1180 Louis VII was buried in the abbey. His bones were transferred to
St. Denis' Abbey in 1817.
The abbey prospered until the
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantage ...
. In approximately 1420 the monks were driven out of the abbey and spent the next 40 years in Melun. After their return in 1460 the monastery was restored and enlarged. The abbey suffered further damage in the
Wars of Religion. Under the
commendatory abbot
A commendatory abbot ( la, abbas commendatarius) is an ecclesiastic, or sometimes a layman, who holds an abbey ''in commendam'', drawing its revenues but not exercising any authority over its inner monastic discipline. If a commendatory abbot is an ...
Cardinal Wilhelm Egon von Fürstenberg the church was again restored.
The abbey was suppressed in 1791 during the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are consider ...
and set on fire in 1793 by the
Sansculottes. The state bought the remaining buildings back in 1810 for use as an orphanage, but sold them in 1837 to a private owner who demolished them and built a country house on the site. A riding school now occupies the former site.
Buildings
There are few remains of the abbey apart from an
ice-cellar. The church of Fontaine-le-Port has preserved some of the 16th-century wooden sculptures from the abbey church, and a chapel in the same village is also said once to have been the abbey's. The church of
Héricy owns an 18th-century altar from the monastery.
References
* Peugniez, Bernard, nd: ''Routier cistercien'' (p. 168). Moisenay: Editions Gaud.
External links
History of Barbeau Abbey
{{coord, 48, 27, 43, N, 02, 46, 28, E, type:landmark_region:FR_source:dewiki, display=title
Cistercian monasteries in France
1147 establishments in Europe
1140s establishments in France
1791 disestablishments in France
Churches in Seine-et-Marne
Christian monasteries established in the 12th century
Religious organizations established in the 1140s