Chimay Abbey () is an abbey in

Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...

in the city of

Chimay Chimay (, ) is a city and Municipalities of Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Hainaut Province, province of Hainaut, Belgium. In 2006, Chimay had a population of 9,774. The area is 197.10 km2 which gives a population density ...

, Hainaut,

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. It has been the name of two or three different religious houses.

Benedictines

The oldest foundation here, in the 9th century, was a

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monastery, Chimay Abbey or St. Monegonde's Abbey (''Abbaye de Ste. Monégonde de Chimay''). This later became a collegiate foundation dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul. The monastery is long gone, but the church still stands in the centre of Chimay as the town's parish church.

Trappists

In 1919 a convent of Trappist nuns, Chimay Abbey or Abbey of Our Lady of Peace (''Abbaye de Notre-Dame de la Paix de Chimay'') was established here. The community, Trappist since 1878, was the successor to the

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

community of Gomerfontaine, founded in 1207, suppressed in 1792 and re-established in 1802 at

Saint-Paul-aux-Bois Saint-Paul-aux-Bois () is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The river Ailette forms most of the commune's northern border. Population See also *Communes of the Aisne department The ...

. It was exiled to Fourbechies in 1904, before coming to Chimay after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

under the protection of the Trappist monastery,

Scourmont Abbey Scourmont Abbey (''Abbaye Notre-Dame de Scourmont'') is a Trappist monastery on the Scourmont plateau, in the village of Forges which is part of Chimay in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. The abbey is famous for its spiritual life and for runni ...

, established at Scourmont in Chimay in 1850.Scourmont has become famous as one of the six

Trappist breweries Trappist beer is brewed by Trappist monks. Thirteen Trappist monasteries—six in Belgium, two in the Netherlands, and one each in Austria, Italy, England, France, and Spain— produce beer, but the ''Authentic Trappist Product'' label is assigned ...

of Belgium, its products being marketed as Chimay beer.

Notes

Sources

History of the Trappist nuns at Chimay

Scourmont Abbey website

Belgium Beer Tour
{{coord, 50, 02, 59, N, 4, 18, 29, E, type:landmark_source:frwiki, display=title Trappist monasteries in Belgium Christian monasteries in Hainaut (province) Chimay