Saint-Saëns (, until about 1940–1950 ) is a commune in the Seine-Maritime

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in the Normandy region in northern France. A small town of farming and associated light industry situated by the banks of the river

Varenne Varenne (foaled in Copparo, Italy, 19 May 1995) is a dark bay racing trotter by Waikiki Beach out of Ialmaz by Zebu. Varenne is considered to be the best trotter of all time. No other trotter has won so many of the most important races in the ...

in the Pays de Bray, some southeast of Dieppe at the junction of the D929, D12, D99 and the D154 roads. Junction 11 of the

A28 autoroute Autoroute 28 is a French mainland motorway linking Abbeville in the Somme to Tours in Indre-et-Loire. The motorway starts at Abbeville, splitting from the A16 and, after merging with the A13 near Rouen, ends at Tours, merging with the A10. ...

with the A29 autoroute is within the commune's territory.

History

The year 674 saw the foundation of a monastery on the hill at the present-day location of the village. The first abbot was Sidonius (Saëns), an Irish monk and a disciple of St Philibert of Jumièges. Sidonius died in about 689 and was buried in the monastery. Called "Sancti Sidonii" in a document of around 830, it was destroyed by the Vikings in the 9th century. In the 11th century, the seigneurs of Saint-Saëns were rich and powerful men. One of them became governor of

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 ...

and another excelled at the Battle of Hastings. In 1127, Helias of Saint-Saens was outlawed in England on the orders of

Henry I of England Henry I (c. 1068 – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in ...

for sheltering Guillaume Cliton, rebel claimant to the

duchy A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a Middle Ages, medieval country, territory, fiefdom, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or Queen regnant, queen in Western European tradition. There once exis ...

of Normandy. The seigneurs built again on Cateliers hill, this time a castle and a collegiate church which later became the Benedictine abbey of Saint-Wandrille. The castle was taken in 1204 by the French king Philip II Augustus and became part of France, like most of Normandy by this time. About 1167Leonie V. Hicks, ''Religious Life in Normandy 1050–1300: Space, Gender and Social Pressure'', Appendix B: Nunneries, p. 201. a

Cistercian 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 ...

convent dedicated to

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cru ...

was founded near the village by nuns from Bival under the patronage of

Empress Matilda Empress Matilda ( 7 February 110210 September 1167), also known as the Empress Maude, was one of the claimants to the English throne during the civil war known as the Anarchy. The daughter of King Henry I of England, she moved to Germany as ...

. This was later upgraded to an abbey in 1629. The abbess was a friend of the king's mistress, Madame de Maintenon, who often contributed to the beautification of the church. By 1740, there was only one monk left at the monastery and after the Revolution it became the present-day church. The castle and village were looted and burned by the English and the Burgundians in 1450 and again by Henry IV of France in 1592. That same year, the Spanish ravaged the manor of Quesnay. In the 14th century, the town was famous for its drapers, blacksmiths, potters and

cutlery Cutlery (also referred to as silverware, flatware, or tableware), includes any hand implement used in preparing, serving, and especially eating food in Western culture. A person who makes or sells cutlery is called a cutler. The city of Sheffie ...

. Glassmaking started here in 1450 at the hamlet of Bully and was active until 1807. The tanneries were well-known up until the 19th century. The Montérolier-Buchy–Saint-Saëns railway, connecting the town with Gare de Montérolier-Buchy, was opened in 1900 and closed in 1953.''Encyclopédie générale des transports'' – ''Chemins de fer'', tome 12, 76.2.

Heraldry

Population

Main sights

* The church of St Saëns, dating from the thirteenth century. * Ruins of the twelfth century castle. * The manor house at the hamlet of Quesnay. * Two chateaus, at Bailly and Vaudichon. * The seventeenth century market building. * Vestiges of the seventeenth century Bernardines convent.

People

Sidonius of Saint-Saëns Sidonius (french: Saëns; ga, Sídann) was an Irish-born French monk and saint. He was the spiritual teacher of Leutfridus. He is venerated in the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church. Sidonus was born sometime in the seventh cent ...

, founder of the town.

References

External links

Former official website (archive from 27 April 2012; accessed 26 July 2016)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saintsaens, Seine-Maritime Communes of Seine-Maritime