Origin from 1118
Fontenay Abbey, near Montbard in the Côte-d'Or department of France, is a Cistercian monastery founded in 1118 by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux and is considered one of the oldest and most complete Cistercian abbeys surviving in Europe. Its church was consecrated in 1147 by Pope Eugene III, and the community grew to house roughly three hundred monks by 1200; King Louis IX exempted the abbey from taxation in 1259, and it was raised to royal abbey status in 1269. The monks left during the French Revolution between 1789 and 1791, after which the site was converted into a paper mill run by the Montgolfier family, and it remained in industrial use until the art collector Edouard Aynard purchased and restored it beginning in 1906, completing the work by 1911. UNESCO designated Fontenay a World Heritage Site in 1981, and nearly all of its original monastic buildings survive intact, including the church, cloister, dormitory, and chapter house, with only the refectory lost; the abbey remains private property of the Aynard family, open to visitors.
Facts
Status
UNESCO World HeritageInscribed on the World Heritage List 1 Origins
Origin Period Site
Type of SiteMonastery or monastic community 1 Connections
Originated In
Source UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay
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Located In
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Sources
1. Abbey of Fontenay (Wikipedia)
Lead section
It is one of the oldest and most complete Cistercian abbeys in Europe, and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981.
Lead section: site type
The Abbey of Fontenay is a former Cistercian abbey located in the commune of Marmagne, near Montbard, in the département of Côte-d'Or in France.
View the Source2. Fontenay Abbey (Wikipedia)
page categoriesQuote, page categories
Category:1118 establishments in Europe
UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay
UNESCO World Heritage CentreOriginated In: France, Record textQuote, Originated In: France, Record text
This last building, dating to the end of the 12th century, recalls the part which the Cistercians played in the technological progress of the Middle Ages, and is one of the oldest industrial buildings in France.
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