Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire - Abbey

The abbey at Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire (originally known as Fleury Abbey) was founded on the banks of the Loire river mid 7th century. It is one of the oldest abbeys of the Benedictine rule in France.

The story starts in 672, when some of its monks traveled to Montecassino (Italy), dug up the remains of St. Benedict of Nursia (+ 547) and his sister St. Scholastica and brought them home. After the relics had reached at Fleury Abbey it which was renamed Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire - and due to the relics became a major place of pilgrimage. Of course, this did not help when the Normans rowed up the Loire and burned the buildings of the monastery. But the convent recovered and rebuilt.

A famous school and a scriptorium existed here in the late 10th century.

The erection of the church started around 1071. When the church was consecrated in 1108, the long nave was not completed.

The abbey thrived, but times got rougher. In 1562, the abbey was pillaged by Huguenots. The buildings were restored, but looted and destroyed again during the French Revolution. Saint-Benoît's monks left the abbey and so the history of the convent ended after more than 1100 years.

The abbey church had escaped destruction and got restored in the 19th century. In 1944, the convent was refounded the abbey buildings were rebuilt by Benedictine monks after World War II. So the history of the convent was just interrupted for about 150 years.

The choir got consecrated in 1108, it may well me, that the ambulatory and the four chapels were not finished then.

But as Philip I of France (aka "the Amorous") died in July 1108 and as he had chosen this church as his burial place, there was a bit of a time pressure.


This is the tomb of Philip I. The effigy depicts the crowned kings sleeping. The crown is created from fleurs-de-lis.

In 1072 Philip had married Bertha of Holland (aka "Bertha of Frisia"). The couple had three children, one of them was Philip´s successor Louis VI (aka "Louis the Fat"). But amorous Philip fell in love with Bertrade de Montfort, who was not only 15 years younger than Bertha, but also the wife of Fulk IV, Count of Anjou. He repudiated Bertha (claiming she was too fat) and married Bertrade in 1092. As both partners were married already, Philip was excommunicated by Pope Urban II. Several times the ban was lifted as Philip promised to part with Bertrade, but he always returned to her. A love story?!

Note the floor tiles. These are Roman tiles from the 4th/5th century, that got reused here, when the choir was erected.

This tomb of course attracted many noble visitors.

In 1130 Pope Innocent II visited the Abbey Fleury, accompanied by Louis VI and Bernard of Clairvaux, the strongest supporter of Innocent. In 1429 Charles VII (aka "le Victorieux", "le Bien-Servi") and Joan of Arc have been here.