The former

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 of Saint-Michel-en-Thiérache is located in Saint-Michel, in the

Thiérache The Thiérache () is a region of France and Belgium united by similar geography and architecture, including the presence of hedgerows, grassland, hilly terrain, scattered settlements, and traditionally-built stone or brick houses with stone dividi ...

(

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hi ...

), between Paris and Brussels.

History

The first chapel was founded in 693 A.D on the initiative of

Ursmar Ursmar of Lobbes (died 713) was a missionary bishop in the Meuse and Ardennes region in present-day Belgium, Germany, Luxemburg and France. He was also the first abbot of Lobbes Abbey. As many missionaries in the 7th and 8th century, he may have b ...

. All current abbey, which includes the church, the cloister and outbuildings, dating back to the twelfth century. The abbey has since its inception undergone various reconstructions and rebuilds. The transept and the choir of the church, and the bays of the chapter house are Gothic and date from the late twelfth century. In the early seventeenth century, Father Jean-Baptiste de Mornat, priest of Venetian origin arrived in France in the suite of

Marie de' Medici Marie de' Medici (french: link=no, Marie de Médicis, it, link=no, Maria de' Medici; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV of France of the House of Bourbon, and Regent of the Kingdom ...

, chaplain and counselor of Kings

Henri IV Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarc ...

and

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 ...

, restores the abbey. The facade and nave date from the classic Abbot Mornat. The monastic buildings around the cloister were rebuilt in the eighteenth century.

Artworks and outstanding objects

An outstanding set of murals depicting the life of St. Benedict dating from the sixteenth century was unearthed in the north gallery of the cloister and was the subject of a restoration. The church also houses an early 18th-century (1714) organ built by Jean Boizard, which was made a historical monument in 1950 and is maintained and used today. According to the researcher Alain Gigot, the church had been closed since 1837 and listed on the inventory of historical monuments in 1927. A festival of music and singing is held annually in June and July.

External links

* Official website http://www.abbaye-saintmichel.com/index2.htm * Tourism in Thiérache http://www.tourisme-thierache.fr/en/Essential-viewing-!/Abbey-of-Saint-Michel-SAINT-MICHEL-EN-THIERACHE {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint-Michel-En-Thierache Abbey Thiérache Christian monasteries established in the 7th century Benedictine monasteries in France 7th-century churches in France