Mont-Saint-Michel (;

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

: ''Mont Saint Miché''; ) is a

tidal island A tidal island is a piece of land that is connected to the mainland by a natural or man-made causeway that is exposed at low tide and submerged at high tide. Because of the mystique surrounding tidal islands, many of them have been sites of ...

and mainland

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 ...

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. The island lies approximately off the country's north-western coast, at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches and is in area. The mainland part of the commune is in area so that the total surface of the commune is . , the island had a

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

of 29.Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2019
INSEE The commune's position—on an island just a few hundred metres from land—made it accessible at low tide to the many pilgrims to its

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 con ...

, but defensible as an incoming tide stranded, drove off, or drowned would-be assailants. The island remained unconquered during the Hundred Years' War; a small garrison fended off a full attack by the English in 1433.

Louis XI Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (french: le Prudent), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revol ...

recognised the reverse benefits of its natural defence and turned it into a prison. The abbey was used regularly as a prison during the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for "ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for ...

. Mont-Saint-Michel and its surrounding bay were inscribed on the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

list of

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

s in 1979 for its unique aesthetic and importance as a medieval Christian site. It is visited by more than 3 million people each year. Over 60 buildings within the commune are protected in France as ''

monuments historiques ''Monument historique'' () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which National Heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a coll ...

''.

Geography

Formation

Now a rocky

, the Mont occupied dry land in prehistoric times. As sea levels rose,

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is dis ...

reshaped the coastal landscape, and several

outcrop An outcrop or rocky outcrop is a visible exposure of bedrock or ancient superficial deposits on the surface of the Earth. Features Outcrops do not cover the majority of the Earth's land surface because in most places the bedrock or superficia ...

s of

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

emerged in the bay, having resisted the wear and tear of the ocean better than the surrounding rocks. These included

Lillemer Lillemer (; br, Enez-Veur) is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department of Brittany in northwestern France. Population Inhabitants of Lillemer are called in French ''lillemérois'' or ''lillemériens''. See also *Communes of the Ille-et-V ...

, the Mont Dol,

Tombelaine Tombelaine is a small tidal island off the coast of Normandy in France. It lies a few kilometres north of Mont Saint-Michel. At low tide the island can be reached on foot (with a guide) from the coast of Cotentin, to the northeast, and from Mon ...

(the island just to the north), and Mont Tombe, later called Mont-Saint-Michel. Mont-Saint-Michel consists of

leucogranite Leucogranite is a light-colored, granitic, igneous rock containing almost no dark minerals. Alaskite is a synonym.intrusion of molten

magma Magma () is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also been discovered on other terrestrial planets and some natural sa ...

about 525 million years ago, during the Cambrian

period Period may refer to: Common uses * Era, a length or span of time * Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark Arts, entertainment, and media * Period (music), a concept in musical composition * Periodic sentence (or rhetorical period), a concept ...

, as one of the younger parts of the Mancellian granitic batholith. (Early studies of Mont-Saint-Michel by French geologists sometimes describe the leucogranite of the Mont as "granulite", but this granitic meaning of

granulite Granulites are a class of high-grade metamorphic rocks of the granulite facies that have experienced high-temperature and moderate-pressure metamorphism. They are medium to coarse–grained and mainly composed of feldspars sometimes associated ...

is now obsolete.) The Mont has a circumference of about and its highest point is above sea level.

Tides

The tides vary greatly, at roughly between highest and lowest water marks. Popularly nicknamed "St. Michael in peril of the sea" by medieval pilgrims making their way across the flats, the mount can still pose dangers for visitors who avoid the causeway and attempt the hazardous walk across the sands from the neighbouring coast. Polderisation and occasional flooding have created

salt marsh A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is domin ...

meadows that were found to be ideally suited to grazing

sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated ...

. The well-flavoured meat that results from the diet of the sheep in the ''pré salé'' (salt meadow) makes '' agneau de pré-salé'' (salt meadow lamb) a local specialty that may be found on the menus of restaurants that depend on income from the many visitors to the mount.

Tidal island

The connection between the Mont-Saint-Michel and the mainland has changed over the centuries. Previously connected by a tidal causeway uncovered only at low tide, this was converted into a raised causeway in 1879, preventing the tide from scouring the silt around the mount. The coastal flats have also been polderised to create pastureland, decreasing the distance between the shore and the island, and the

Couesnon The Couesnon (; br, Kouenon) is a river running from the ''département'' of Mayenne in north-western France, forming an estuary at Mont Saint-Michel. It is long, and its drainage basin is . Its final stretch forms the border between the histor ...

River has been

canalised River engineering is a discipline of civil engineering which studies human intervention in the course, characteristics, or flow of a river with the intention of producing some defined benefit. People have intervened in the natural course and be ...

, reducing the dispersion of the flow of water. These factors all encouraged

silting Siltation, is water pollution caused by particulate terrestrial clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay. It refers both to the increased concentration of suspended sediments and to the increased accumulation (temporary or ...

-up of the bay. On 16 June 2006, the French prime minister and regional authorities announced a €200 million project () to build a

hydraulic dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, a ...

using the waters of the Couesnon and the tides to help remove the accumulated silt, and to make Mont-Saint-Michel an island again. The construction of the dam began in 2009. The project also includes the removal of the causeway and its visitor car park. Since 28 April 2012, the new car park on the mainland has been located from the island. Visitors can walk or use shuttles to cross the causeway. On 22 July 2014, the new bridge by architect

Dietmar Feichtinger Dietmar Feichtinger (born 18 November 1961 in Bruck an der Mur) is an Austrian architect established since 1989 in Paris. Biography After graduating in 1988 from the Technical University of Graz with honors, he moved to Paris in 1989 where he fo ...

was opened to the public. The light bridge allows the waters to flow freely around the island and improves the efficiency of the now operational dam. The project, which cost €209 million, was officially opened by President François Hollande. On rare occasions, tidal circumstances produce an extremely high "supertide". The new bridge was completely submerged on 21 March 2015 by the highest sea level, for a once-in-18-years occurrence, as crowds gathered to snap photos.

History

Mont-Saint-Michel was used in the sixth and seventh centuries as an

Armorica Armorica or Aremorica (Gaulish: ; br, Arvorig, ) is the name given in ancient times to the part of Gaul between the Seine and the Loire that includes the Brittany Peninsula, extending inland to an indeterminate point and down the Atlantic Coast ...

n stronghold of Gallo-Roman culture and power until it was ransacked by the

Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools, ...

, thus ending the trans- channel culture that had stood since the departure of the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

in 460. From roughly the fifth to the eighth century, Mont-Saint-Michel belonged to the territory of

Neustria Neustria was the western part of the Kingdom of the Franks. Neustria included the land between the Loire and the Silva Carbonaria, approximately the north of present-day France, with Paris, Orléans, Tours, Soissons as its main cities. It late ...

and, in the early ninth century, was an important place in the

marches of Neustria The Marches of Neustria (french: Marches de Neustrie; br, Marz Neustria; Norman: ''Maurches de Neûtrie'') were two marches created in 861 by the Carolingian king of West Francia Charles the Bald. They were ruled by officials appointed by the Mo ...

Before the construction of the first monastic establishment in the 8th century, the island was called ''Mont Tombe'' ( la, link=no, tumba). According to a legend, the archangel Michael appeared in 708 to

Aubert of Avranches Saint Aubert, also known as Saint Autbert, was bishop of Avranches in the 8th century and is credited with founding Mont Saint-Michel. Life Aubert lived in France during the reign of Childebert III (695-711) and died about 720. He was born of ...

, the

bishop of Avranches The Roman Catholic Diocese of Coutances (–Avranches) ( Latin: ''Dioecesis Constantiensis (–Abrincensis)''; French: ''Diocèse de Coutances (–Avranches)'') is a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in France. Its mother church is the Ca ...

, and instructed him to build a church on the rocky islet. Unable to defend his kingdom against the assaults of the

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and ...

, the king of the Franks agreed to grant the Cotentin peninsula and the

Avranchin Avranchin is an area in Normandy, France corresponding to the territory of the Abrincatui, a tribe of Celts from whom the city of Avranches, the main town of the Avranchin, takes its name. In 867, by the Treaty of Compiègne, Charles the Bald gave ...

, including Mont-Saint-Michel traditionally linked to the city of Avranches, to the

Bretons The Bretons (; br, Bretoned or ''Vretoned,'' ) are a Celtic ethnic group native to Brittany. They trace much of their heritage to groups of Brittonic speakers who emigrated from southwestern Great Britain, particularly Cornwall and Devon, mo ...

in the

Treaty of Compiègne A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pers ...

. This marked the beginning of a brief period of Breton possession of the Mont. In fact, these lands and Mont-Saint-Michel were never really included in the duchy of Brittany and remained independent bishoprics from the newly created Breton archbishopric of Dol. When

Rollo Rollo ( nrf, Rou, ''Rolloun''; non, Hrólfr; french: Rollon; died between 928 and 933) was a Viking who became the first ruler of Normandy, today a region in northern France. He emerged as the outstanding warrior among the Norsemen who had se ...

confirmed Franco as

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 Arch ...

, these traditional dependences of the Rouen archbishopric were retained in it. The mount gained strategic significance again in 933 when

William I Longsword William Longsword (french: Guillaume Longue-Épée, nrf, Willâome de lon Espee, la, Willermus Longa Spata, on, Vilhjálmr Langaspjót; c. 893 – 17 December 942) was the second ruler of Normandy, from 927 until his assassination in 942.Det ...

annexed the

Cotentin Peninsula The Cotentin Peninsula (, ; nrf, Cotentîn ), also known as the Cherbourg Peninsula, is a peninsula in Normandy that forms part of the northwest coast of France. It extends north-westward into the English Channel, towards Great Britain. To its w ...

from the weakened

Duchy of Brittany The Duchy of Brittany ( br, Dugelezh Breizh, ; french: Duché de Bretagne) was a medieval feudal state that existed between approximately 939 and 1547. Its territory covered the northwestern peninsula of Europe, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean t ...

. This made the mount definitively part of

, and is depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry, which commemorates the 1066 Norman conquest of England.

Harold Godwinson Harold Godwinson ( – 14 October 1066), also called Harold II, was the last crowned Anglo-Saxon English king. Harold reigned from 6 January 1066 until his death at the Battle of Hastings, fighting the Norman invaders led by William the ...

is pictured on the tapestry rescuing two Norman knights from the

quicksand Quicksand is a colloid consisting of fine granular material (such as sand, silt or clay) and water. It forms in saturated loose sand when the sand is suddenly agitated. When water in the sand cannot escape, it creates a liquefied soil that los ...

in the tidal flats during a battle with

Conan II, Duke of Brittany Conan II of Rennes (c. 1033 – 11 December 1066) was Duke of Brittany, from 1040 to his death. Conan was the eldest child and heir of Alan III, Duke of Brittany by his wife Bertha of Blois, and member of the House of Rennes. He was the elder br ...

. Norman ducal patronage financed the spectacular

Norman architecture The term Norman architecture is used to categorise styles of Romanesque architecture developed by the Normans in the various lands under their dominion or influence in the 11th and 12th centuries. In particular the term is traditionally used f ...

of the abbey in subsequent centuries. BayeuxTapestryScene16 17

In 1067 the monastery of Mont-Saint-Michel gave its support to

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 ...

in his claim to the throne of England. This he rewarded with properties and grounds on the English side of the Channel, including a small island off the southwestern coast of

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

which was modelled after the Mount and became a

priory named St Michael's Mount of Penzance. Cannons abandonded by Thomas Scalles at Mont Saint-Michel

During the Hundred Years' War, the

Kingdom of England The Kingdom of England (, ) was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from 12 July 927, when it emerged from various History of Anglo-Saxon England, Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Kingdom of Scotland, ...

made repeated assaults on the island but was unable to seize it due to the abbey's improved fortifications. The English initially besieged the Mont in 1423–24, and then again in 1433–34 with English forces under the command of

Thomas de Scales, 7th Baron Scales Thomas Scales, 7th Baron Scales (9 October 1399 – 20 July 1460) was an English nobleman and one of the main English military commanders in the last phase of the Hundred Years' War. The son of Robert de Scales, 5th Baron Scales (c. 1372–1402 ...

. Two wrought-iron bombards that Scales abandoned when he gave up his siege are still on site. They are known as ''les Michelettes''. Mont-Saint-Michel's resolute resistance inspired the French, especially

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronat ...

. When Louis XI of France founded the

Order of Saint Michael , status = Abolished by decree of Louis XVI on 20 June 1790Reestablished by Louis XVIII on 16 November 1816Abolished in 1830 after the July RevolutionRecognised as a dynastic order of chivalry by the ICOC , founder = Louis XI of France , h ...

in 1469, he intended that the abbey church of Mont-Saint-Michel become the chapel for the order, but because of its great distance from Paris, his intention could never be realized. The wealth and influence of the abbey extended to many daughter foundations, including St. Michael's Mount in

. However, its popularity and prestige as a centre of

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

waned with the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, and by 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 coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

there were scarcely any monks in residence. The abbey was closed and converted into a prison, initially to hold clerical opponents of the republican regime. High-profile political prisoners followed, but by 1836, influential figures—including

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

—had launched a campaign to restore what was seen as a national architectural treasure. The prison was finally closed in 1863. In 1872, the highly decorated French architect of historic monuments, Édouard Corroyer, was responsible for assessing the condition of the Mont. It took him about two years to convince his minister to classify Mont-Saint-Michel a historic monument, and it was officially declared as such in 1874. From then on, this highly qualified and educated architect and member of the Academy of Fine Arts devoted himself entirely to the restoration of "la Merveille". Under his direction, gigantic works were undertaken, starting with the most urgent and devoted fifteen years of his life to this work. He wrote four works on the building and his name remains forever attached to the "resurrection" of Mont-Saint-Michel. During the occupation of France in

WWII World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, German soldiers occupied Mont-Saint-Michel, where they used St. Auburn church as a lookout post. The island was a major attraction for German tourists and soldiers with around 325,000 German tourists from July 18, 1940, to the end of the occupation of France. After the initial D-Day invasion by the allies, many exhausted German soldiers retreated to strongholds like Mont-Saint-Michel. On August 1, 1944, Allied troops entered the Mont-Saint-Michel. They were accompanied by two British reporters, Gault MacGowan of the ''New York Sun'' and Paul Holt with the ''London Daily Express'', and crowds of jubilant French locals. Mont-Saint-Michel and its bay were added to the UNESCO list of

World Heritage Sites A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

in 1979, and it was listed with criteria such as cultural, historical, and architectural significance, as well as human-created and natural beauty.

Abbey design

In the 11th century,

William of Volpiano Saint William of Volpiano (Italian: ''Guglielmo da Volpiano''; French: ''Guillaume de Volpiano'', also of Dijon, of Saint-Benignus, or of Fécamp; June/July 962 – 1 January 1031) was a Northern Italian monastic reformer, composer, and founding ...

, the Italian architect who had built Fécamp Abbey in Normandy, was chosen by

Richard II, Duke of Normandy Richard II (died 28 August 1026), called the Good (French: ''Le Bon''), was the duke of Normandy from 996 until 1026. Life Richard was the eldest surviving son and heir of Richard the Fearless and Gunnor. He succeeded his father as the ruler of D ...

, to be the building contractor. He designed the Romanesque church of the abbey, daringly placing the transept crossing at the top of the mount. Many underground crypts and chapels had to be built to compensate for this weight; these formed the basis for the supportive upward structure that can be seen today. Today Mont-Saint-Michel is seen as a building of Romanesque architecture. Robert de Thorigny, a great supporter of

Henry II of England Henry II (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189), also known as Henry Curtmantle (french: link=no, Court-manteau), Henry FitzEmpress, or Henry Plantagenet, was King of England from 1154 until his death in 1189, and as such, was the first Angevin king ...

(who was also Duke of Normandy), reinforced the structure of the buildings and built the main façade of the church in the 12th century. In 1204,

Guy of Thouars Guy of Thouars (died 13 April 1213) was the third husband of Constance, Duchess of Brittany, whom he married in Angers, County of Anjou between August and October 1199 after her son Arthur of Brittany entered Angers to be recognized as count of ...

, regent for the

Duchess of Brittany This is a list of rulers of the Duchy of Brittany. In different epochs the sovereigns of Brittany were kings, princes, and dukes. The Breton ruler was sometimes elected, sometimes attained the position by conquest or intrigue, or by hereditary r ...

, as

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...

of the King of France, undertook a siege of the Mount. After having set fire to the village and having massacred the population, he was obliged to beat a retreat under the powerful walls of the abbey. Unfortunately, the fire which he himself lit extended to the buildings, and the roofs fell prey to the flames. Horrified by the cruelty and the exactions of his Breton ally, Philip Augustus offered Abbot Jordan a grant for the reconstruction of the abbey in the new Gothic architectural style. Charles VI is credited with adding major fortifications to the abbey-mount, building towers, successive courtyards, and strengthening the ramparts.

Development

File:200506 - Mont Saint-Michel 50 - Maquette.JPG, 10th century File:200506 - Mont Saint-Michel 51 - Maquette.JPG, 11th to 12th century File:200506 - Mont Saint-Michel 52 - Maquette.JPG, 17th to 18th century File:200506 - Mont Saint-Michel 53 - Maquette.JPG, 19th to 21st century

Administration

The islet belongs to the French

of Le Mont-Saint-Michel, in the département of

Manche Manche (, ) is a coastal French département in Normandy, on the English Channel, which is known as ''La Manche'', literally "the sleeve", in French. It had a population of 495,045 in 2019.SNCF train station, is

Pontorson Pontorson () is a commune in the Manche department in north-western France. On 1 January 2016, the former communes of Macey and Vessey were merged into Pontorson. Geography Pontorson is situated about 10 kilometres from the Mont Saint-Miche ...

, with a population of slightly over 4,000. Le Mont-Saint-Michel belongs to the Organization of World Heritage Cities.

Population

Up to 20,000 people visit the city during the summer months. Among the 43 inhabitants , five were

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s and seven

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

The Monastic Fraternities of Jerusalem

Since 24 June 2001, following the appeal addressed to them in 2000 by Bishop Jacques Fihey, Bishop of Coutances and Avranches, a community of monks and nuns of the

Monastic Fraternities of Jerusalem The Monastic Communities of Jerusalem were founded in 1975 by Brother Pierre-Marie Delfieux (died March 2013), until then prior general, with the aim of promoting the spirit of the monastic desert (cf. Charles de Foucauld) in the heart of cities ...

, sent from the mother-house of St-Gervais-et-St-Protais in Paris, have been living as a community on Mont-Saint-Michel. They replaced the Benedictine monks who returned to the Mount in 1966. They are tenants of the centre for national monuments and are not involved in the management of the abbey. The community has seven sisters and four brothers. They live the mission that the Church has entrusted to them in their own charism of being "in the heart of the world" to be "in the heart of God". Their life revolves around prayer, work and fraternal life. The community meets four times a day to recite the liturgical office in the abbey itself (or in the crypt of Notre-Dame des Trente Cierges in winter). In this way, the building keeps its original purpose as a place of prayer and singing the glory of God. The presence of the community attracts many visitors and pilgrims who come to join in the various liturgical celebrations. In 2012, the community undertook the renovation of a house on the Mount, the Logis Saint-Abraham, which is used as a guest house for pilgrims on retreat.

People and places of note

Robert of Torigni Robert of Torigni (also known as Roburtus de Monte) (c. 1110–1186) was a Norman monk, prior, abbot and twelfth century chronicler. Religious life Robert was born at Torigni-sur-Vire, Normandy c. 1110 most probably to an aristocratic family but ...

, famous abbot of the Mount; * The Duke of Chartres (later Louis-Philippe I) came to demolish the "iron cage"; *

Louis Auguste Blanqui Louis Auguste Blanqui (; 8 February 1805 – 1 January 1881) was a French socialist and political activist, notable for his revolutionary theory of Blanquism. Biography Early life, political activity and first imprisonment (1805–1848) Bl ...

, political prisoner in the Mount; *

Armand Barbès Armand Barbès (18 September 1809 – 26 June 1870) was a French Republican revolutionary and an opponent of the July monarchy (1830–1848). He is remembered as a man whose life centers on two days: * ''12 May 1839'', the day of the uprising ...

, political prisoner in the Mount; * La Mère Poulard, famous omelet restaurant; * Anne Boutiaut Poulard, creator of the Omelette de la mère Poulard.

Economy

The Mont-Saint-Michel has long "belonged" to some families who shared the businesses in the town and succeeded to the village administration. Tourism is almost the sole source of income of the commune. Tourism brings about $63 million to the small island. There are about 50 shops for three million tourists. Only about 25 people sleep every night on the Mount (monks included), except for those in hotels. The main institutions are shared by: * Eric Vannier, owner of the group the Mère Poulard (holding half of restaurants, shops, hotels and three museums); * Jean-Yves Vételé, CEO of Sodetour (five hotels, a supermarket and shops—all extramural—including Mercury Barracks); * Patrick Gaul, former elected official, hotelier and intramural restaurateur; * Independent merchants.

Twin towns and sister cities

Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima is a city located in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The name derives from a market traditionally held on the 20th of each month with ''hatsuka'' (廿日) meaning "20th day" and ''ichi'' (市) translating to "market". The market continues to this day ...

, Japan, where Itsukushima Shrine, another UNESCO World Heritage Site, is located. Historically, Mont-Saint-Michel was the Norman counterpart of St Michael's Mount in

, UK, which was given to the Benedictines, religious order of Mont-Saint-Michel, by Edward the Confessor in the 11th century. The two mounts share the same tidal island characteristics and a similar conical shape, though Mont-Saint-Michel is much taller. Mont-Saint-Michel 2008 PD 32

Modern pilgrimage

During the

medieval 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 ...

period, pilgrims walked from Italy, Germany and England, as well as other parts of France. Such devotees were known as Miquelots. Modern pilgrims can follow the same routes. Ten hiking trails have been created that enable pilgrims from various European countries to retrace the path their ancestors may have taken during a medieval pilgrimage.

In popular culture

Mont-Saint-Michel served as an artistic inspiration for a number of works. Part of the action in

Helen MacInnes Helen Clark MacInnes (October 7, 1907 – September 30, 1985) was a Scottish-American writer of espionage novels. Life She and her husband emigrated to the United States in 1937, when he took an academic position at Columbia University in New Y ...

's 1943 film thriller ''

Assignment in Brittany ''Assignment in Brittany'' is a 1943 war film directed by Jack Conway and starring French actor Jean-Pierre Aumont and Swedish actress Signe Hasso, both in their American film debuts. Also starring was American actress Susan Peters. The film w ...

'' takes place at the Mont, including a dramatic nighttime chase across the sands. In Peter Jackson's 2003 film '' The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'',

Gondor Gondor is a fictional kingdom in J. R. R. Tolkien's writings, described as the greatest realm of Men in the west of Middle-earth at the end of the Third Age. The third volume of ''The Lord of the Rings'', ''The Return of the King'', is largel ...

's capital city, Minas Tirith, was modelled on Mont-Saint-Michel. The site appeared in the 2004 film '' Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers''. Likewise, the town and castle in the 2010 Disney hit film ''

Tangled ''Tangled'' is a 2010 American 3D computer-animated musical adventure fantasy comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Loosely based on the German fairy tale ''Rapunzel'' in the collection of ...

'' were based on Mont-Saint-Michel, as was the design of the 2011 video game ''

Dark Souls is a series of action role-playing games created by Hidetaka Miyazaki of FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The series began with the release of '' Dark Souls'' (2011) and has seen two sequels, ''Dark Souls II'' (2014) ...

'' location New Londo Ruins. A mission in 2022 video game

Sniper Elite 5 ''Sniper Elite 5'' is a 2022 third-person tactical shooter stealth video game developed and published by Rebellion Developments. It is the sequel to '' Sniper Elite 4''. It was released on May 26, 2022, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Play ...

features an abbey that closely resembles Mont-Saint-Michel.

References

External links

Mont Saint-Michel：A World Heritage Site

Freeing Mont Saint-MichelMont Saint-Michel between history and legends

Official Mont-Saint-Michel Tourist site (English version)

Virtual recreation of Mont St. Michel in Second Life

Pano at 360° of Mont St Michel
* High-resolution 360° Panoramas and Images o
Mont Saint-Michel , Art Atlas

The Sledge Tramway
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montsaintmichel Buildings and structures in Manche Car-free zones in Europe Carolingian architecture Churches in Manche Communes of Manche Islands of Normandy Landmarks in France Ramsar sites in Metropolitan France Tidal islands of France Tourist attractions in Manche Fortified settlements World Heritage Sites in France Michael (archangel) Peaks dedicated to Michael (archangel) Landforms of Normandy 7 Most Endangered Programme Populated coastal places in France