Foigny Abbey () was a

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 ...

monastery located in

La Bouteille La Bouteille () is a commune in the department of Aisne in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Aisne department The following is a list of the 796 communes in the French department of Aisne. Th ...

, in a valley in the

Thiérache The Thiérache (; Picard: ''Quiérache'') is a region of France and Belgium united by similar geography and architecture, including the presence of hedgerows, grassland, hilly terrain, scattered settlements, and traditionally-built stone or brick ...

, in the north-eastern region of the

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; ) is a French departments of France, department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne (river), Aisne. In 2020, it had a population of 529,374. Geography The department borders No ...

department. It was founded on 11 July 1121 by

Bernard of Clairvaux Bernard of Clairvaux, Cistercians, O.Cist. (; 109020 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, Mysticism, mystic, co-founder of the Knights Templar, and a major leader in the reform of the Benedictines through the nascent Cistercia ...

and Barthélemy of Jur,

bishop of Laon The diocese of Laon in the present-day département of Aisne, was a Catholic diocese for around 1300 years, up to the French Revolution. Its seat was in Laon, France, with Laon Cathedral. From early in the 13th century, the bishop of Laon was ...

. The church floor plan is based on that of the church of

Clairvaux Abbey Clairvaux Abbey (, ''l’abbaye de Clairvaux''; ) was a Cistercian monastery in Ville-sous-la-Ferté, from Bar-sur-Aube. The abbey was founded in 1115 by Bernard of Clairvaux. As a primary abbey, it was one of the most significant monasteri ...

, as was confirmed by excavations in 1959. The abbey prospered and at its height had no less than 100 monks and 200

lay brother Lay brother is a largely extinct term referring to religious brothers, particularly in the Catholic Church, who focused upon manual service and secular matters, and were distinguished from choir monks or friars in that they did not pray in choi ...

s farming 12,000 hectares owned by the abbey, reaching as far as the gates of

Laon Laon () is a city in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. History Early history The Ancient Diocese of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held s ...

. The abbey significantly contributed to the economic growth of the

region. The

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

carried out together with other abbeys enabled the conversion of forest land to agriculture and the establishment of new settlements around the farms owned by the abbeys. Later, a large number of

mills Mills is the plural form of mill, but may also refer to: As a name * Mills (surname), a common family name of English or Gaelic origin * Mills (given name) *Mills, a fictional British secret agent in a trilogy by writer Manning O'Brine Places U ...

were established thanks to generous donations from the local nobility and the clergy. The abbey was destroyed by fire in 1542. Major works on the site began in 1722 and in 1736 work began on the reconstruction of the conventual buildings, but had to stop because of lack of funds. In the French Revolution the abbey was suppressed and pillaged: there were only 11 monks by this time. In 1794 the abbey buildings were used as a military hospital. At the end of the 19th century, a chapel was built in the choir of the former abbey church. The site also includes a mill whose oldest part dates to the 12th century, which was still in operation until 2000 and which since 1982 has used the

River Thon The Thon or Ton is a small river in northern France. It is a tributary of the river Oise, which flows into the Seine. It crosses the Ardennes and Aisne departments and is the central river of the Thiérache The Thiérache (; Picard: ''Quiérache ...

to produce hydroelectric power.

References

{{Coord, 49, 53, 31, N, 3, 58, 26, E, region:FR_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Thiérache Cistercian monasteries in France Monasteries in Aisne Churches in Aisne Christian monasteries established in the 1120s 1121 establishments in Europe 1120s establishments in France