The abbey of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa () is 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 ...

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 ...

located in the territory of the

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

Codalet Codalet () is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. It is very small with only a few streets but has much character. There are no shops but there is a little park with a boules court and soccer goal as well as a ...

, in the

Pyrénées-Orientales Pyrénées-Orientales (; ca, Pirineus Orientals ; oc, Pirenèus Orientals ; ), also known as Northern Catalonia, is a department of the region of Occitania, Southern France, adjacent to the northern Spanish frontier and the Mediterranean Sea. ...

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...

'', in southwestern

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 ...

. It was founded initially in 840, and then refounded at its present site in 878, after a flood destroyed the original buildings. It was an important cultural centre in the regency of

Abbot Oliba Oliba (; 971–1046) was the count of Berga and Ripoll (988–1002), and later abbot of the monasteries of Santa Maria de Ripoll and Sant Miquel de Cuixà (1008–1046) and the bishop of Vic (1018–1046). He is considered one of ...

. Parts of what was once building material from the 12th century abbey now partially make up

The Cloisters The Cloisters, also known as the Met Cloisters, is a museum in the Washington Heights, Manhattan, Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City. The museum, situated in Fort Tryon Park, specializes in European medieval art ...

museum in New York City.

Foundation and apogee of the abbey

The origins of Cuixà abbey lie at Sant Andreu d'Eixalada, an abbey founded by the

Benedictines , 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 ...

in about 840, and located at the head of the

Tet Tet or TET may refer to: Vietnam *Tết or Tết Nguyên Đán, the Vietnamese new year, Lunar new year *Tet Offensive, a military campaign during the Vietnam War that began in 1968 **Tet 1969 Geography *Têt (river) in Roussillon, France *Tét, ...

valley. In the autumn of 878, the river broke its banks, flooding and destroying the monastery (located near the river-bed) and causing a likely death toll of at least 12. The remainder of the monks were forced to seek shelter in the surrounding countryside. The community then transferred to its present site at Cuixà, a minor cenobitic community dedicated to Saint Germanus, led by Father Protais. In June 879, Protasius and

Miro the Elder Miro, called the Old or the Elder (in Catalan, ''Miró el Vell'') was the count of Conflent from 870 and Rosselló ( Roussillon) from 878 until his death in 896. He was the son of Sunifred I, count of Barcelona, Urgell, Cerdanya, and Besalú, an ...

count of Conflent The County of Conflent or Confluent ( la, Confluensis) was one of the Catalan counties of the Marca Hispanica in the ninth century. Usually associated with the County of Cerdanya and the county of Razès, and was located to the west of County of R ...

and

Roussillon Roussillon ( , , ; ca, Rosselló ; oc, Rosselhon ) is a historical province of France that largely corresponded to the County of Roussillon and part of the County of Cerdagne of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is part of the reg ...

, signed the founding treaty of the new monastery, whereby Cuixà extended its properties with those contributed by Eixalada and Protasius was named abbot. The abbey continued under the protection of the count of Cerdanya and Conflent. The territory then came under the domain of the family of Wilfred I,

count of Barcelona The Count of Barcelona ( ca, Comte de Barcelona, es, Conde de Barcelona, french: Comte de Barcelone, ) was the ruler of the County of Barcelona and also, by extension and according with the Usages of Barcelona, usages and Catalan constitutions, of ...

in 870. In about 940, under the initiative of Sunifred II of Cerdanya, a new church dedicated to Saint Michael was built. In 956 the building was refurbished and made more sumptuous; the main altar was consecrated on 30 September 974 by Garí, a monk from

Cluny Cluny () is a commune in the eastern French department of Saône-et-Loire, in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. It is northwest of Mâcon. The town grew up around the Benedictine Abbey of Cluny, founded by Duke William I of Aquitaine in 9 ...

who led five southern monasteries. When the

Doge of Venice The Doge of Venice ( ; vec, Doxe de Venexia ; it, Doge di Venezia ; all derived from Latin ', "military leader"), sometimes translated as Duke (compare the Italian '), was the chief magistrate and leader of the Republic of Venice between 726 a ...

Pietro I Orseolo Pietro I Orseolo OSBCam, also named ''Peter Urseulus'', (928–987) was the Doge of Venice from 976 until 978. He abdicated his office and left in the middle of the night to become a monk. He later entered the order of the Camaldolese Hermits of ...

, accepted

Romuald Romuald ( la, Romualdus; 951 – traditionally 19 June, c. 1025/27 AD) was the founder of the Camaldolese order and a major figure in the eleventh-century "Renaissance of eremitical asceticism".John Howe, "The Awesome Hermit: The Symbolic ...

's advice to become a monk, he abdicated and fled in the night to Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa accompanied by Romuald and his companion, Marinus, who established a hermitage nearby.

Cesare Borgia Cesare Borgia (; ca-valencia, Cèsar Borja ; es, link=no, César Borja ; 13 September 1475 – 12 March 1507) was an Italian ex- cardinal and '' condottiero'' (mercenary leader) of Aragonese (Spanish) origin, whose fight for power was a major ...

probably never came to the abbey, although he was named by his father

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...

of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa in 1494, one among many other revenue-earning titles, which he kept until 1498. The abbey was initially part of the territory of the

County of Barcelona The County of Barcelona ( la, Comitatus Barcinonensis, ca, Comtat de Barcelona) was originally a frontier region under the rule of the Carolingian dynasty. In the 10th century, the Counts of Barcelona became progressively independent, heredi ...

, then of the

Kingdom of Majorca The Kingdom of Majorca ( ca, Regne de Mallorca, ; es, Reino de Mallorca; la, Regnum Maioricae; french: Royaume de Majorque) was a realm on the east coast of Spain, which included certain Mediterranean islands, and which was founded by James I o ...

and the

Crown of Aragon The Crown of Aragon ( , ) an, Corona d'Aragón ; ca, Corona d'Aragó, , , ; es, Corona de Aragón ; la, Corona Aragonum . was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of B ...

. After the dynastic union of the

and the

Kingdom of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; es, Reino de Castilla, la, Regnum Castellae) was a large and powerful state on the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. Its name comes from the host of castles constructed in the region. It began in the 9th centu ...

, all of the lands contained therein became part of

Habsburg Spain Habsburg Spain is a contemporary historiographical term referring to the huge extent of territories (including modern-day Spain, a piece of south-east France, eventually Portugal, and many other lands outside of the Iberian Peninsula) ruled be ...

. During the

Reapers' War The Reapers' War ( ca, Guerra dels Segadors, , es, Guerra de los Segadores), also known as the Catalan Revolt, was a conflict that affected a large part of the Principality of Catalonia between the years of 1640 and 1659. It had an enduring ef ...

or Catalan Revolt against

Philip IV of Spain Philip IV ( es, Felipe, pt, Filipe; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered f ...

, the Catalan Republic (1641) asked for the protection of the King of France

Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

, who became

Count of Barcelona The Count of Barcelona ( ca, Comte de Barcelona, es, Conde de Barcelona, french: Comte de Barcelone, ) was the ruler of the County of Barcelona and also, by extension and according with the Usages of Barcelona, usages and Catalan constitutions, of ...

. At the end of the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

and

of France signed the 1659

Treaty of the Pyrenees The Treaty of the Pyrenees (french: Traité des Pyrénées; es, Tratado de los Pirineos; ca, Tractat dels Pirineus) was signed on 7 November 1659 on Pheasant Island, and ended the Franco-Spanish War that had begun in 1635. Negotiations were ...

whereby

Northern Catalonia Northern Catalonia, North Catalonia, ; french: Catalogne (du) Nord ; oc, Catalonha (del) Nòrd; es, Cataluña (del) Norte) French Catalonia or Roussillon refers to the Catalan-speaking and Catalan-culture territory ceded to France by Spain ...

was annexed to the Kingdom of France, while the rest of Catalonia came back under Spanish rule. The abbey was nationalized along with other ecclesiastical properties 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 ...

of 1789, and subsequently sold, with the clergy evicted. Subsequently, the buildings fell into disrepair. Some sculpture from the abbey found its way into a collection of

George Grey Barnard George Grey Barnard (May 24, 1863 – April 24, 1938), often written George Gray Barnard, was an American sculptor who trained in Paris. He is especially noted for his heroic sized '' Struggle of the Two Natures in Man'' at the Metropolitan Museu ...

(1863–1938), a prominent American sculptor, and an avid collector and dealer of medieval art. In 1914, Barnard opened his "Cloisters" exhibit on Fort Washington Avenue, New York, along with sculpture from a number of medieval sites.

was rebuilt and expanded by

John D. Rockefeller Jr. John Davison Rockefeller Jr. (January 29, 1874 – May 11, 1960) was an American financier and philanthropist, and the only son of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller. He was involved in the development of the vast office complex in M ...

in 1938 at Fort Tryon Park, Upper Manhattan and is now a significant Medieval museum within the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

. The centerpiece and namesake of the museum is a cloister built using fragments of the 12th century cloister of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa. The Cuxa abbey was refounded in 1919 and subsequently restored under the

Cistercians 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 ...

, an order which originated as an offshoot of the Benedictines. The abbey was transferred back to the

Benedictines , 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 ...

in 1965.

Music festival

The abbey is one of the venues used by the

Pablo Casals Festival The Pablo Casals Festival is a music festival in the French Pyrenees created by the cellist and conductor Pablo Casals in 1950. History Casals opposed the Francoist regime in Spain which lasted until after his death. As an exile, Prades in th ...

, which was founded in 1950.

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

was filmed in the abbey in 1954 as he performed Bach's Suite No. 1 in G Major.

References

External links

Official website
- French. History page in English. *

Sant Andreu d'Eixalada Sant may refer to: People * Alfred Sant (born 1948), Maltese politician * Andrew Sant (born 1950), English-born Australian poet * David Sant (born 1968), Catalan director, actor and writer * Indira Sant (1914–2000), Indian poet * James Sant ( ...

Catalan Wikipedia page.
Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa
- Visiting information - Dead link 2015 {{DEFAULTSORT:Abbey Of Saint-Michel-De-Cuxa Benedictine monasteries in France Buildings and structures in Pyrénées-Orientales Christian monasteries established in the 9th century Churches in Pyrénées-Orientales Romanesque architecture in France Monuments historiques of Pyrénées-Orientales

Foundation and apogee of the abbey

Music festival

See also

References

External links