The Abbey of St. Symphorian, Autun, (french: Abbaye Saint-Symphorien d'Autun) is a former

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...

, later a priory, of

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s located outside the walls of

Autun Autun () is a subprefecture of the Saône-et-Loire department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of central-eastern France. It was founded during the Principate era of the early Roman Empire by Emperor Augustus as Augustodunum to give a Ro ...

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

, France.

History

The abbey was named after Saint

Symphorianus of Autun :''Symphorian is also the name of one of the Four Crowned Martyrs. For various places in France and Belgium, see Saint-Symphorien.'' Symphorian (Symphorianus, Symphorien), Timotheus (Timothy), and Hippolytus of Rome are three Christian martyrs ...

, a 2nd-century

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

, and was founded by Saint

Euphronius Euphronios ( el, Εὐφρόνιος; c. 535 – after 470 BC) was an ancient Greek vase painter and potter, active in Athens in the late 6th and early 5th centuries BC. As part of the so-called "Pioneer Group," (a modern name given to a group ...

bishop of Autun The Roman Catholic Diocese of Autun (–Chalon-sur-Saône–Mâcon–Cluny) (Latin: ''Dioecesis Augustodunensis (–Cabillonensis–Matisconensis–Cluniacensis)''; French: ''Diocèse d'Autun (–Chalon-sur-Saône–Mâcon–Cluny)''), more simpl ...

, in the 5th century; its existence is attested in 452. It was attached to the

Abbey of St. Martin, Autun The Abbey of St. Martin is a former Benedictine monastery in Autun, Saône-et-Loire, France, to the northeast of the city just outside the city walls, on the right bank of the Arroux and to the north of the Roman road from Autun to Langres, Beau ...

, in 910, of which it later became a priory. The monastery was rebuilt in the 17th century. It was suppressed in the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

and the surviving premises are now privately owned. It was listed as a ''

monument historique ''Monument historique'' () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which National Heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a coll ...

'' in 1993 for its buildings and given classified status in 1994 for the perimeter wall. Saint

Germain of Paris Germain ( la, Germanus; 496 – 28 May 576) was the bishop of Paris The Archdiocese of Paris (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Parisiensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Paris'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Cat ...

(d. 576) was abbot here, as was

Virgilius of Arles Virgilius of Arles (died c. 610; Virgil, Virgile) was Archbishop of Arles in Gaul. According to a life written in the eighth century he was born in a village of Aquitaine, became a monk, Abbot of Lérins, and Bishop of Arles, where he built a basi ...

(d. October 610). Saint Marius of Avenches,

bishop of Lausanne The Bishop of Lausanne (French: ''Évêque de Lausanne'') was a Prince-Bishop of the Holy Roman Empire (since 1011) and the Ordinary of the diocese of Lausanne, Switzerland (Latin: ''Dioecesis Lausannensis''). Bern secularized the bishopric in ...

in the 6th century, was from the region of

and was believed to have been educated here. Saint Eustace of Bourges (d. 607) trained here before becoming archdeacon of Autun and later

Archbishop of Bourges In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...

. Among the abbey's properties was the priory church of Saint-Symphorien in

Champagne-en-Valromey Champagne-en-Valromey () is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France. On April 28, 2009, Champagne-en-Valromey was awarded the Wine Tasting International Pride Award for producing more than 12 different prize-winning wines in less ...

(1055), in the deanery of Ceysserieu.Régeste genevois n°205, p.57 & 461

References

{{coord, 46.9681, N, 4.3150, E, source:wikidata, display=title Benedictine monasteries in France Buildings and structures in Saône-et-Loire