Barbeau Abbey (french: Abbaye de Barbeau or Abbaye Notre-Dame de Barbeau;

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

: ''Barbelum'', ''Sequanae portus'', or ''Sacer portus'') is a former

Cistercian monastery 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 ...

in Fontaine-le-Port in the French department of

Seine-et-Marne Seine-et-Marne () is a Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne (river), Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square ...

. It was located approximately 10 kilometers northeast of

Fontainebleau Fontainebleau (; ) is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the ''arrondissement ...

and 8 kilometers southeast of

Melun Melun () is a Communes of France, commune in the Seine-et-Marne Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region, north-central France. It is located on the southeastern outskirts of Paris, about from the kilome ...

History

Barbeau Abbey was founded in 1147 by King Louis VII of France on the banks of the

Seine ) , mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur , mouth_coordinates = , mouth_elevation = , progression = , river_system = Seine basin , basin_size = , tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle , tributarie ...

, whence the original name ''Seine-Port'', or ''Sequanae Portus'', in Latin. It was transferred to its present site in 1156. The present name is supposedly derived from the French word for

barbel Barbel may refer to: *Barbel (anatomy), a whisker-like organ near the mouth found in some fish (notably catfish, loaches and cyprinids) and turtles *Barbel (fish), a common name for certain species of fish **''Barbus barbus'', a species of cyprinid ...

, which is also depicted in the abbey's arms. According to the foundation legend a barbel was fished out of the Seine and found to contain a ring mounted with a precious stone that was lost by Saint Loup as he crossed the river, the sale of which raised the funds to build the monastery. In 1180 Louis VII was buried in the abbey. His bones were transferred to St. Denis' Abbey in 1817. The abbey prospered until 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, ...

. In approximately 1420 the monks were driven out of the abbey and spent the next 40 years in Melun. After their return in 1460 the monastery was restored and enlarged. The abbey suffered further damage in the

Wars of Religion A religious war or a war of religion, sometimes also known as a holy war ( la, sanctum bellum), is a war which is primarily caused or justified by differences in religion. In the modern period, there are frequent debates over the extent to wh ...

. Under the

commendatory abbot A commendatory abbot ( la, abbas commendatarius) is an ecclesiastic, or sometimes a layman, who holds an abbey ''in commendam'', drawing its revenues but not exercising any authority over its inner monastic discipline. If a commendatory abbot is an ...

Cardinal Wilhelm Egon von Fürstenberg the church was again restored. The abbey was suppressed in 1791 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 ...

and set on fire in 1793 by the

Sansculottes The (, 'without breeches') were the common people of the lower classes in late 18th-century France, a great many of whom became radical and militant partisans of the French Revolution in response to their poor quality of life under the . The ...

. The state bought the remaining buildings back in 1810 for use as an orphanage, but sold them in 1837 to a private owner who demolished them and built a country house on the site. A riding school now occupies the former site.

Buildings

There are few remains of the abbey apart from an ice-cellar. The church of Fontaine-le-Port has preserved some of the 16th-century wooden sculptures from the abbey church, and a chapel in the same village is also said once to have been the abbey's. The church of

Héricy Héricy () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Demographics Inhabitants are called ''Héricéens''. See also *Communes of the Seine-et-Marne department The following is a list o ...

owns an 18th-century altar from the monastery.

References

* Peugniez, Bernard, nd: ''Routier cistercien'' (p. 168). Moisenay: Editions Gaud.

External links

History of Barbeau Abbey
{{coord, 48, 27, 43, N, 02, 46, 28, E, type:landmark_region:FR_source:dewiki, display=title Cistercian monasteries in France 1147 establishments in Europe 1140s establishments in France 1791 disestablishments in France Churches in Seine-et-Marne Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Religious organizations established in the 1140s