Saintes - Abbaye aux Dames

The Abbey of Sainte-Marie-des-Dames was the first Benedictine abbey for women Charente-Maritime. It was founded in 1047 by Geoffrey II (aka "Geoffrey Martel") and his first wife Agnes of Burgundy. Eleanor of Aquitaine, mother of Richard Lionheart, was a great donor here.

The place, where the abbey got erected, was a Roman cemetery. An Oratorium, over the tomb of Saint Pallais, existed here already in the 6th century.

Saintes was a major halt for the pilgrims following the Via Turonensis, so the abbey developed well, during the first centuries. During the 100 Year´s War the abbey got ruined, reconstructed later, it got severely damaged by Huguenots during the Wars of Religions.

The abbey existed up to the end of the 18th century. After the French Revolution the buldings served as prison and from 1808 on as a barracks. The church was used as a stable for the horses of the cavalry.

The barracks were here up to the early 1920s, before the first renovations were started. In 1938 the abbey church "Sainte-Marie" got consecrated again.

The abbey got severely damaged during the Wars of Relgion. Unusual for the Poitou two domes were built over nave, similar to Sainte-Marie de Souillac and Saint-Front de Périgueux. When the Huguenots vandalized the church in 1568, they tried to burn down the church. The fire destroyed the roof, what caused the domes to collapse. The domes never got rebuilt. The "holes" later got closed by the wooden lids, seen here.