The former

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

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

Thiérache The Thiérache (; Picard: ''Quiérache'') 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 ...

(

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; ) is a French departments of France, department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne (river), Aisne. In 2020, it had a population of 529,374. Geography The department borders No ...

Picardy Picardy (; Picard language, Picard and , , ) is a historical and cultural territory and a former regions of France, administrative region located in northern France. The first mentions of this province date back to the Middle Ages: it gained it ...

), between Paris and Brussels.

History

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

Ursmar Ursmar of Lobbesalso known as Ursmer or Ursmarus (born 644, 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. Like many missio ...

. 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 Jean-Baptiste () is a male French name, originating with Saint John the Baptist, and sometimes shortened to Baptiste. The name may refer to any of the following: Persons * Charles XIV John of Sweden, born Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte, was Ki ...

, priest of Venetian origin arrived in France in the suite of

Marie de' Medici Marie de' Medici (; ; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV. Marie served as regent of France between 1610 and 1617 during the minority of her son Louis XIII. Her mandate as rege ...

, chaplain and counselor of Kings

Henri IV Henry IV (; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry (''le Bon Roi Henri'') or Henry the Great (''Henri le Grand''), was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 16 ...

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