The Priory of Haute-Bruyère (french: Prieuré de Haute-Bruyère), also known as the Priory of Our Lady of Haute-Bruyère (fr:prieuré Notre-Dame-des-Hautes-Bruyères) is a monastery of the Order of Fontevrault near

Saint-Rémy-l'Honoré Saint-Rémy-l'Honoré () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. See also *Communes of the Yvelines department An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to ...

Yvelines Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.Île-de-France , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 = +01:00 , timezone1_DST = CEST , utc_offset1_DST = +02:00 , blank_name_sec1 = Gross regional product , blank_info_sec1 = Ranked 1st , bla ...

received both men and women.

History

The priory was founded in 1114 by Amaury III de Montfort and Bertrade de Monfort, his sister, who became a nun of the Fontevrault Order after the end of her marriage to King Philip I. All of the monasteries affiliated with the

Abbey of Fontevrault The Royal Abbey of Our Lady of Fontevraud or Fontevrault (in French: ''abbaye de Fontevraud'') was a monastery in the village of Fontevraud-l'Abbaye, near Chinon, in the former French duchy of Anjou. It was founded in 1101 by the itinerant preache ...

had the title of priories because of their dependency on Fontevrault and they had an abbot or abbess as the sole leader of the congregation. In the 15th century, armed bands destroyed crops in the region and the priory was abandoned. In 1537, the priory, having been given new life, numbered 128 members. King

Francis I Francis I or Francis the First may refer to: * Francesco I Gonzaga (1366–1407) * Francis I, Duke of Brittany (1414–1450), reigned 1442–1450 * Francis I of France (1494–1547), King of France, reigned 1515–1547 * Francis I, Duke of Saxe-Lau ...

died 31 Mar 1547 at Chateau de Rambouillet near Haute-Bruyère. His body was transported to the priory where his heart was preserved until 1852, the date it was transferred to the

Basilica of Saint Denis The Basilica of Saint-Denis (french: Basilique royale de Saint-Denis, links=no, now formally known as the ) is a large former medieval abbey church and present cathedral in the commune of Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris. The building ...

. From 1590 to 1591, the nuns were on trial against Etienne Fleur at the Bailiwick of Epernon for unpaid royalties and rent. 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 ...

marked the end for the Order of Fontevrault and the Priory of Haute-Bruyère. It was closed in 1790. It was demolished and its land sold in 1794.

Montfort Necropolis

Since its foundation, the priory has served as a family necropolis for the Lords and Counts of Montfort-l'Amaury. Amongst others, the following people are interred there: * Bertrade de Montfort,

Queen of the Franks This is a list of the women who have been Queens consort of the Frankish people. As all monarchs of the Franks have been required by law and tradition to be male, there has never been a Queen regnant of the Franks (although some women have gove ...

, founder of the priory; * Simon IV de Montfort, leader of the

Albigensian Crusade The Albigensian Crusade or the Cathar Crusade (; 1209–1229) was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted primarily by the French crown ...

; * Amaury VI de Montfort (heart),

Grand Constable of France The Constable of France (french: Connétable de France, from Latin for 'count of the stables') was lieutenant to the King of France, the first of the original five Great Officers of the Crown (along with seneschal, chamberlain, butler, and c ...

, son of the previous; * Beatrice de Montfort, granddaughter of the previous.

List of Prioresses

*1114-1128: Bertrade de Montfort (1070-1128), retired in 1108 after the death of her husband to the Abbey of Fontevrault. She was Prioress from 1114 to her death 1128. *1530: Agnès de Marfin who reformed the priory. *1567: Michelle de Hérangue, who issued a receipt for 100 livres collected on the estate of Caen.

Notable People Who Traveled to the Priory

*The youngest daughter of Gui III de Chevreuse and Aline de Corbeil in the 13th century.

Possessions

Ranches and Farms

*Haute-Bruyère;

Beauvais Beauvais ( , ; pcd, Bieuvais) is a city and commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise département, in the Hauts-de-France region, north of Paris. The commune of Beauvais had a population of 56,020 , making it the most populous ...

; Châtillon; Montmort; de la Justice (cattle farm) ; La Tasse Farm (1662-1789) in (

Les Essarts-le-Roi Les Essarts-le-Roi () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. Geography Les Essarts-le-Roi is bordered by Coignières and Lévis-Saint-Nom to the northeast, Dampierre-en-Yvelines to the east, S ...

). * Epernon: building for the exploitation of grain and wine metering rights; this property was donated to Épernon by Guillaume de Puiseux.

Vineyards

Courbevoie Courbevoie () is a commune located in the Hauts-de-Seine Department of the Île-de-France region of France. It is in the suburbs of the city of Paris, from the center of Paris. The centre of Courbevoie is situated from the city limits of Par ...

;

Nanterre Nanterre (, ) is the prefecture of the Hauts-de-Seine department in the western suburbs of Paris. It is located some northwest of the centre of Paris. In 2018, the commune had a population of 96,807. The eastern part of Nanterre, bordering t ...

;

Puteaux Puteaux () is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the heart of the Hauts-de-Seine department, from the centre of Paris. In 2016, it had a population of 44,941. La Défense, Paris's business district hosting the ...

;

Rueil Rueil-Malmaison () is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, in the Hauts-de-Seine department, Île-de-France region. It is located from the centre of Paris. In 2017, it had a population of 78,152. It is one of the wealthiest suburbs of Par ...

;

Suresnes Suresnes () is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, Île-de-France. Located in Hauts-de-Seine, from the centre of Paris, it had a population of 49,145 as of 2016. The nearest communes are Nanterre, Puteaux, Rueil-Malmaison, Saint-Cloud an ...

Chapels, Churches and Oratories

An oratory at a place called Abbecourt in Orgeval was the subject of an agreement with the Abbey of Our Lady of Coloumbs.Departmental Archives of Eure-et-Loir, cote H 1261.

Description of the Buildings

The entrance is that of the current farm. Its lintel carries the coat of arms of the convent. Immediately on the right are the stables facing the barn that once served as a hospital. Extending from that are the buildings of the priests including the cloister, dormitory, refectory and private chapel built in 1778 and destroyed in 1794. The cemetery is below. In front of the church was the chapter house, destroyed in 1794 and replaced by house built by stones from the priory in 1798. The two cloisters are an extension of it. There was also a drinking trough.

References

Sources

''This page is a translation of :fr:Prieuré de Haute-Bruyère.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Priory Of Haute-Bruyere Monasteries in France Order of Fontevraud