Abbaye de Molesme dans le Monasticon Gallicanum

Molesme Abbey was a well-known

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 ...

monastery in

Molesme Molesme () is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France. History Molesme grew up round the Benedictine monastery of Molesme Abbey, established here in the late 11th century by Saint Robert, who later founded Cîteaux Abbey, moth ...

, in Laignes,

Côte-d'Or Côte-d'Or (; literally, "Golden Slope") is a département in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of Northeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 534,124.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 ...

, on the border of the Dioceses of Langres and

Troyes Troyes () is a commune and the capital of the department of Aube in the Grand Est region of north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about south-east of Paris. Troyes is situated within the Champagne wine region and is near to ...

History

Molesme Abbey was founded in 1075 by

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, a former prior of the Abbey of Montier-la-Celle near Troyes. In 1070 he was appointed abbot of the Abbey of Saint-Michel in Tonnerre, which had become lax in observance of the

Benedictine Rule The ''Rule of Saint Benedict'' ( la, Regula Sancti Benedicti) is a book of precepts written in Latin in 516 by St Benedict of Nursia ( AD 480–550) for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot. The spirit of Saint Benedict's Ru ...

. He found the monks reluctant to adopt any reforms and returned to Montier-la-Celle. At about this time he consented to repeated requests from a group of hermits to lead them in founding a new community of austerity of life. They settled in 1075 on a piece of land on a hillside by the River Laigne, in the present Molesme, not far from what once was the site of the

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

settlement of

Vertillum Vertillum is a Gallo-Roman site in the modern commune of Vertault in the Côte-d'Or department of eastern France. It has been extensively (and often destructively) excavated over the past century. Many of the objects found at the site are held in ...

. The land had been given to Abbot Robert by Hugo de Norlennac. There they built a house and chapel from the branches of trees. Here the community lived in extreme poverty until a bishop visited them, and, seeing their need, sent them a supply of food and clothing.Obrecht, Edmond. "Notre-Dame de Molesme." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 10. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 18 November 2021 News of the rigour of the new foundation and of the holiness of its members soon spread, and attracted many members of noble families, who in many cases brought with them their worldly possessions. These gifts, together with the many benefactions the new abbey received, enabled the community to build a magnificent church, as well as suitable monastic buildings. Among the many who were inspired to join Robert at Molesme were

Stephen Harding Stephen Harding (french: Étienne Harding) ( 106028 March 1134) was an English-born monk and abbot, who was one of the founders of the Cistercian Order. He is honoured as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church. Life There is little archival ev ...

, future leader of the Cistercians, and

Bruno of Cologne Bruno of Cologne, O.Cart. (german: Bruno von Köln, it, Bruno di Colonia;c. 1030 – 6 October 1101), venerated as Saint Bruno, was the founder of the Carthusian Order. He personally founded the order's first two communities. He was a celebrate ...

, future founder of the

Carthusian Order The Carthusians, also known as the Order of Carthusians ( la, Ordo Cartusiensis), are a Latin enclosed religious order of the Catholic Church. The order was founded by Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns. The order has its ...

.Staley, Tony. "Robert of Molesme wanted a rigorous monastic life", ''The Compass News'', Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin, April 24, 2010
/ref> The increase in numbers and wealth however caused a temporary loss of rigour, in that many of the new monks were not keen to work in the fields, preferring to live on the alms given them. This dissatisfaction reached the point of open rebellion and Robert therefore left Molesme in 1098, accompanied by only the most fervent religious, and this time founded

Cîteaux Abbey Cîteaux Abbey (french: Abbaye de Cîteaux, links=no ) is a Catholic abbey located in Saint-Nicolas-lès-Cîteaux, south of Dijon, France. It is notable for being the original house of the Cistercian order. Today, it belongs to the Trappists ...

, which although it was originally intended as a Benedictine monastery, became the first and mother-house of the

Cistercian Order The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint B ...

. The monks of Molesme meanwhile repented of their faults, and begged

Pope Urban II Pope Urban II ( la, Urbanus II; – 29 July 1099), otherwise known as Odo of Châtillon or Otho de Lagery, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 March 1088 to his death. He is best known for convening th ...

to oblige Robert to return to them, which he did in 1099, and continued to govern them and to make of Molesme a centre of strict Benedictine observance until his death in 1111. Besides Cîteaux, Molesme founded seven or eight other monasteries and had about the same number of Benedictine nunneries under its jurisdiction. The monastery with its church was destroyed and its possessions confiscated in 1472 during the war between France and Burgundy. The buildings were again burned by the

Huguenots The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss politica ...

towards the close of the sixteenth century in the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholic Church, Catholics and Protestantism, Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estim ...

. In the seventeenth century the spiritual life of the monastery was revived on the introduction of the reform of St. Maur in 1648. The buildings were comprehensively restored during the 18th century, but the abbey was suppressed during 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 most of the buildings, including the abbey church, were destroyed.

Present day

The principal survival is the Church of Sainte-Croix, built in the second half of the 13th century as a chapel for the abbey's novices, which remained in use as a church after the destruction of the rest of the abbey. In the 19th century a new belltower was constructed. The building was damaged in 1940 during fighting between French and German troops in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and traces of this damage are still visible. There are also some remains of service and ancillary buildings. The abbey site has been a listed ''

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 ...

'' since 1985. It is accessible by prior arrangement only.

History

Present day

Notes

References

Further reading