Saint-Ouen Abbey, (french: Abbaye Saint-Ouen de Rouen) is a large
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
church and 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 ...
monastic
Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religion, religious way of life in which one renounces world (theology), worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic ...
church in
Rouen
Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...
. It is named for
Audoin
Alduin (Langobardic: ''Aldwin'' or ''Hildwin'', ; also called Auduin or Audoin) was king of the Lombards from 547 to 560.
Life
Audoin was of the Gausi, a prominent Lombard ruling clan, and according to the ''Historia Langobardorum'', the son ...
(french: Ouen, ), 7th-century
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
of Rouen in modern
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
,
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 ...
. The church's name is sometimes
anglicized
Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influen ...
as St Owen's. Built on a similar scale to nearby
Rouen Cathedral
Rouen Cathedral (french: Cathédrale primatiale Notre-Dame de l'Assomption de Rouen) is a Roman Catholic church in Rouen, Normandy, France. It is the see of the Archbishop of Rouen, Primate of Normandy. It is famous for its three towers, each i ...
, the abbey is famous for both its architecture and its large, unaltered
Cavaillé-Coll organ, which was described by
Charles-Marie Widor
Charles-Marie-Jean-Albert Widor (21 February 1844 – 12 March 1937) was a French organist, composer and teacher of the mid-Romantic era, most notable for his ten organ symphonies. His Toccata from the fifth organ symphony has become one of the ...
as "a
Michelangelo
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...
of an organ". With the
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...
and the
Church of Saint-Maclou
The Church of Saint-Maclou is a Roman Catholic church in Rouen, France which is considered one of the best examples of the Flamboyant style of Gothic architecture in France.
Saint-Maclou, along with Rouen Cathedral, the Palais de Justice (also Fl ...
, Saint-Ouen is one of the principal
French Gothic
French Gothic architecture is an architectural style which emerged in France in 1140, and was dominant until the mid-16th century. The most notable examples are the great Gothic cathedrals of France, including Notre-Dame Cathedral, Reims Cathedra ...
monuments of the city.
The Abbey
![Normandie Seine Rouen16 tango7174](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Normandie_Seine_Rouen16_tango7174.jpg)
The current church building was originally built as the abbey church of Saint-Ouen for the Benedictine Order, beginning in 1318 and interrupted by the
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French Crown, ...
and sacked and badly damaged during the
Harelle
The Harelle (; from ''haro'') was a revolt that occurred in the French city of Rouen in 1382 and followed by the Maillotins uprising a few days later in Paris, as well as numerous other revolts across France in the subsequent week. France was in ...
. It was completed in the 15th century in the
Flamboyant
Flamboyant (from ) is a form of late Gothic architecture that developed in Europe in the Late Middle Ages and Renaissance, from around 1375 to the mid-16th century. It is characterized by double curves forming flame-like shapes in the bar-tr ...
style.
The foundation of Saint-Ouen Abbey has been variously credited, among others, to
Chlothar I
Chlothar I, sometime called "the Old" ( French: le Vieux), (died December 561) also anglicised as Clotaire, was a king of the Franks of the Merovingian dynasty and one of the four sons of Clovis I.
Chlothar's father, Clovis I, divided the kin ...
and to
Clotilde
Clotilde ( 474–545), also known as Clothilde, Clotilda, Clotild, Rotilde etc. (Latin: Chrodechildis, Chlodechildis from Frankish ''*Hrōþihildi'' or perhaps ''*Hlōdihildi'', both "famous in battle"), was a Queen of All the Franks. She was ...
,
royal saint and wife of
Clovis I
Clovis ( la, Chlodovechus; reconstructed Frankish: ; – 27 November 511) was the first king of the Franks to unite all of the Frankish tribes under one ruler, changing the form of leadership from a group of petty kings to rule by a single kin ...
, but evidence is scanty. It was dedicated at first to
Saint Peter
Saint Peter; he, שמעון בר יונה, Šimʿōn bar Yōnāh; ar, سِمعَان بُطرُس, translit=Simʿa̅n Buṭrus; grc-gre, Πέτρος, Petros; cop, Ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ, Petros; lat, Petrus; ar, شمعون الصفـا, Sham'un ...
; when the body of Audoin,
Archbishop of Rouen
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Rouen (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Rothomagensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Rouen'') is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. As one of the fifteen Archbishops of France, the Ar ...
(d. 678), was buried there; the name of St Peter and St Ouen became common and finally St Ouen only.
The history of the abbey, on record from the 1000, is unremarkable; a list of abbots is in ''
Gallia Christiana
The ''Gallia Christiana'', a type of work of which there have been several editions, is a documentary catalogue or list, with brief historical notices, of all the Catholic dioceses and abbeys of France from the earliest times, also of their occupan ...
'' XI, 140.
The fourth abbot,
Nicolas
Nicolas or Nicolás may refer to:
People Given name
* Nicolas (given name)
Mononym
* Nicolas (footballer, born 1999), Brazilian footballer
* Nicolas (footballer, born 2000), Brazilian footballer
Surname Nicolas
* Dafydd Nicolas (c.1705–1774), ...
(r. 1042–1092) was the first cousin of
William the Conqueror
William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...
, and supplied ships and men for the
Norman Conquest
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...
.
In 1660 the monastery was united to the
Congregation of Saint Maur
The Congregation of St. Maur, often known as the Maurists, were a congregation of French Benedictines, established in 1621, and known for their high level of scholarship. The congregation and its members were named after Saint Maurus (died 565), ...
, and when suppressed, in 1794, the community numbered twenty-four. The abbey buildings were confiscated at the time of 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 ...
and were subsequently occupied by the Town Hall of Rouen.
Architecture
The church is 137 m in length under 33 m high
vault
Vault may refer to:
* Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards
Architecture
* Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space
* Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored
* Burial vault (enclosure ...
s. The central crossing is surmounted by an unusual lantern-style tower similar to that at
Ely Cathedral
Ely Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is an Anglican cathedral in the city of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.
The cathedral has its origins in AD 672 when St Etheldreda built an abbey church. The presen ...
in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. The tower was completed in the
Flamboyant
Flamboyant (from ) is a form of late Gothic architecture that developed in Europe in the Late Middle Ages and Renaissance, from around 1375 to the mid-16th century. It is characterized by double curves forming flame-like shapes in the bar-tr ...
style.
The well-preserved
stained glass
Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...
of the
nave
The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...
dates to the 15th and 16th centuries, and features jewel tones among panels of clear and frosted white glass. These materials allow more light to filter into the nave, creating a brighter interior than is typical of
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
churches. Despite the use of Flamboyant tracery in the
aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parl ...
s,
triforium
A triforium is an interior gallery, opening onto the tall central space of a building at an upper level. In a church, it opens onto the nave from above the side aisles; it may occur at the level of the clerestory windows, or it may be locate ...
, and
clerestory
In architecture, a clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey) is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both.
Historically, ''clerestory'' denoted an upper l ...
, the nave maintains a conservative appearance through the use of
compound pier
Compound pier or cluster pier is the architectural term given to a clustered column or pier which consists of a centre mass or newel, to which engaged or semi-detached shafts have been attached, in order to perform (or to suggest the performance ...
s, trumpet bases, and
capitals which helps maintain harmony throughout the edifice.
The west façade was never completed during the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
. The present structure was constructed between 1846 and 1851 in a
Neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
style that bears little resemblance to the original Late Gothic designs.
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, 1910. (2787320269).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, 1910. (2787322649).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, 1910. (2788174178).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, 1910. (2788174286).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, 1910(?). (2788175980).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, n.d.. (2787320553).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, n.d.. (2787320663).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, n.d.. (2788174684).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, n.d.. (2788174728).jpg
File:St. Ouen, Rouen, France, n.d.. (2788174600).jpg
File:Sant-Ouen de Rouen.jpg
Organ
The church contains a large four-
manual
Manual may refer to:
Instructions
* User guide
* Owner's manual
* Instruction manual (gaming)
* Online help
Other uses
* Manual (music), a keyboard, as for an organ
* Manual (band)
* Manual transmission
* Manual, a bicycle technique similar to ...
pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks ...
built in 1890 by
Aristide Cavaillé-Coll. This instrument is considered to be one of the most important organs in France, and is notable for its powerful 32' Contre-bombarde. The organ stands unaltered and thus is one of the few of his works to speak with its original voice.
* Couplers: Tirasse G.O., Tirasse Pos., Tirasse Réc., Appel G.O., Pos./G.O., Réc./G.O., Bomb./G.O., Pos./Réc., Bomb./Réc., Oct. gr. G.O., Oct. gr. Réc./G.O., Oct. gr. Réc., Oct. aiguë Réc., Anches Péd., Anches G.O., Anches Pos., Anches Réc., Anches Bomb., Trémolo Réc., Expression Réc.
Notes
Bibliography
* Davis, Michael T. and Linda Elaine Neagley. "Mechanics and Meaning in the Plan Designs of
Saint-Urbain, Troyes and Saint-Ouen, Rouen," ''Gesta'' 39 (2000): 161-182. https://www.jstor.org/stable/767144
External links
Gallery of St. Ouen de Rouenin
Flickr
Flickr ( ; ) is an American image hosting and video hosting service, as well as an online community, founded in Canada and headquartered in the United States. It was created by Ludicorp in 2004 and was a popular way for amateur and professional ...
Description of the church and organ
{{DEFAULTSORT:Church of Saint Ouen, Rouen
15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in France
Roman Catholic churches completed in 1851
Benedictine monasteries in France
Gothic architecture in France
Roman Catholic churches in Rouen
19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in France