Mont Cornillon Abbey (''L'Abbaye du Mont-Cornillon'' in French) was a Premonstratensian monastery which occupied a site in

Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...

close to Liège,

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. In 1288 the abbey having moved to a new location, it became known as Beaurepart Abbey. It was the home of Saint Juliana of Liège.

History

The abbey was founded by

Albero I of Louvain Albero I of Louvain (1070 – 1 January 1128) was the 57th Prince-Bishop of Liège from 1123 until his death. Albero was the third son of Henry II, Count of Leuven and Adela of Tweisterbant. After the suspicious death of Prince-Bishop Frede ...

Bishop of Liège A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

, in 1124, three years after Saint Norbert had formed the

Premonstratensian Order The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

. The abbey, intended for

Canons Regular Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by ...

of Prémontré from

Floreffe Abbey Floreffe Abbey is a former Premonstratensian monastery, the second of the order to be founded, situated in Wallonia on the Sambre at Floreffe, about 11 km southwest of Namur, Belgium. History When Norbert of Xanten, founder of the Premonstra ...

near Namur, stood on the right bank of the

Meuse The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a t ...

on an elevation called Mont Cornillon which overlooked the city of Liège. In the early years of the order all Premonstratensian abbeys were double abbeys, that is to say, the canons lived on one side of the church and the nuns, who had charge of the hospital for women, on the other side. Where an abbey stood on an elevation, as was the case at Mont Cornillon, both the nunnery and the hospital were built at the foot of the hill. Saint Juliana of Liège (born 1193; died 1258), whose name is connected with the institution of the

feast of Corpus Christi The Feast of Corpus Christi (), also known as the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, is a Christian liturgical solemnity celebrating the Real Presence of the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ in the elements o ...

on account of her visions, was a nun of this convent. The first abbot of Mont Cornillon was Blessed Lucas, one of Saint Norbert's disciples, a learned and holy religious, some of whose writings have been published in the "Bibliotheca Magna Patrum", and also by

Migne Jacques Paul Migne (; 25 October 1800 – 24 October 1875) was a French priest who published inexpensive and widely distributed editions of theological works, encyclopedias, and the texts of the Church Fathers, with the goal of providing a ...

. The Bishop of Liège, wishing to build a fortress on the heights of Cornillon, gave the canons in exchange in 1288 another site in his episcopal city where the abbey, from that time on called Beaurepart Abbey (''"Bellus Reditus"''), stood until it was suppressed by the French Republic in 1796. All the religious refused to take the oath of allegiance to the Republic; some were exiled and one was put to death. The abbey was declared to be of public utility and consequently was not sold. For a time it served as an arsenal and for other government purposes, but by decree of 11 June 1809,

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

gave the abbey to the Bishop of Liège as his residence and as the

Diocesan Seminary of Liège The Diocesan Seminary of Liège (in French: ''Séminaire épiscopal'' or ''Grand Séminaire de Liège''), now also Espace Prémontrés, is an educational institution in the Diocese of Liège, founded in 1592. History The seminary was first founded ...

. On the abbey's original site on Mont Cornillon the

Little Sisters of the Poor The Little Sisters of the Poor (french: Petites Sœurs des pauvres) is a Catholic religious institute for women. It was founded by Jeanne Jugan. Having felt the need to care for the many impoverished elderly who lined the streets of French towns ...

have built an old people's home, and the former nunnery at the foot of the hill is now occupied by Carmelite nuns.

References

{{coord, 50, 38, 03, N, 5, 34, 14, E, type:landmark_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title Christian monasteries in Liège Province Premonstratensian monasteries in Belgium 1124 establishments in Europe Religious organizations established in the 1120s Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Buildings and structures in Liège