Montmerle Charterhouse (french: Chartreuse Notre-Dame de Montmerle du Val-Saint-Étienne, la, Mons Merula) is a former

charterhouse Charterhouse may refer to: * Charterhouse (monastery), of the Carthusian religious order Charterhouse may also refer to: Places * The Charterhouse, Coventry, a former monastery * Charterhouse School, an English public school in Surrey London ...

, or

Carthusian 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 ...

monastery, located in

Lescheroux Lescheroux is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France. Geography The Sâne Vive has its source in the commune; it crosses the village and forms part of the commune's northern border. The Sâne Morte forms part of the commune's nort ...

, in the arrondissement of

Bourg-en-Bresse Bourg-en-Bresse (; frp, Bôrg) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Ain Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region in Eastern France. Located northeast of Lyon, it is the capital of the ...

and the canton of

Saint-Trivier-de-Courtes Saint-Trivier-de-Courtes () is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France. Politics and administration List of mayors Population See also *Communes of the Ain department The following is a list of the 393 communes of the Ain ...

, in the department of

Ain Ain (, ; frp, En) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where it ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

History

Benedictines

The first monastery established here was a

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 ...

priory, founded in 1070 by Hugh d'Asnières des Bois. It was subordinate to Seillon Priory, and both were later subordinate to Joug-Dieu Abbey. Hugh of Colemi (''Hugo Coloniacum'') in the

Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem ( la, Regnum Hierosolymitanum; fro, Roiaume de Jherusalem), officially known as the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem or the Frankish Kingdom of Palestine,Example (title of works): was a Crusader state that was establishe ...

granted lands to found a

grange Grange may refer to: Buildings * Grange House, Scotland, built in 1564, and demolished in 1906 * Grange Estate, Pennsylvania, built in 1682 * Monastic grange, a farming estate belonging to a monastery Geography Australia * Grange, South Austral ...

here exempt from feudal duties, in 1202.

Carthusians

Like Seillon, Montmerle became a Carthusian community in 1210, following a

bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e., cows), bulls have long been an important symbol in many religions, includin ...

issued by

Pope Innocent III Pope Innocent III ( la, Innocentius III; 1160 or 1161 – 16 July 1216), born Lotario dei Conti di Segni (anglicized as Lothar of Segni), was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 to his death in 16 J ...

, the 36th Carthusian foundation. Montmerle Charterhouse was dissolved in 1792 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 ...

, when some of its paintings, including a number by

Nicolas-Guy Brenet Nicolas-Guy Brenet (1 July 1728 — 21 February 1792) was a French History painting, history painter. Brenet was born and died in Paris. He studied in the atelier of François Boucher, but abandoned his master's rococo manner in the 1760s, to p ...

, were moved to the parish church of

Pont-de-Vaux Pont-de-Vaux () is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ain department *List of medieval bridges in France The list of medieval bridges in France comprises all bridges built between 500 ...

Present day

The monastery is in ruins, except for the main entrance and the mill.Moulins de l'Ain: Montmerle

Sources

* Genton, André, nd: ''Montmerle: la chartreuse oubliée.'' * Schwengel, Georg, nd (published 1981): ''Propago sacri Ordinis cartusiensis er Franciam ars 2:de provinciis Burgundiæ, Franciæ, Picardiæ, Teutoniæ, et Angliæ'' ritish Library London additional manuscript 17085, published in''Analecta cartusiana'', No 90.2. Salzburg: Institut für Anglistik und Amerikanistik
Watercolour of Montmerle Charterhouse, late 17th or early 18th century, possibly by Louis Boudan

Gallica BNF: Same image, larger

References

Carthusian monasteries in France Benedictine monasteries in France Christian monasteries in Ain Ruins in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes {{France-Christian-monastery-stub