Saint Bavo's Abbey () is a former

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 Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

in the currently Belgian city of

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

. It was founded in the

7th century The 7th century is the period from 601 through 700 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. The spread of Islam and the Muslim conquests began with the unification of Arabia by the Islamic prophet Muhammad starting in 622 ...

Saint Amand Amandus ( 584 – 679), commonly called Saint Amand, was a bishop of Tongeren-Maastricht and one of the catholic missionaries of Flanders. He is venerated as a saint, particularly in France and Belgium. Life The chief source of details of his ...

, who also founded Saint Peter's Abbey, Ghent, near the confluence of the

Leie The Lys () or Leie () is a river in France and Belgium, and a left-bank tributary of the Scheldt. Its source is in Pas-de-Calais, France, and it flows into the river Scheldt, with the confluence in the city of Ghent, Belgium. Its total length ...

and

Scheldt The Scheldt ( ; ; ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of Netherlands, the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to Old Englis ...

rivers. Originally, the abbey was also called Ganda, a name of

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

origin, meaning "river mouth", referring to the Leie river debouching into the Scheldt river. In the 9th century, the abbey was raided twice by Vikings, which made the monks flee to

Laon Laon () is a city in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. History Early history The Ancient Diocese of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held s ...

. After an absence of nearly 50 years, they came back to Ghent and re-established the abbey. The German emperor

Otto II Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy. Otto II was ...

saw the abbey as a strategic defense point on the Scheldt river (the former border between the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

and

West Francia In medieval historiography, West Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the West Franks () constitutes the initial stage of the Kingdom of France and extends from the year 843, from the Treaty of Verdun, to 987, the beginning of the Capet ...

) in his eternal conflict with

Louis V of France Louis V ( – 22 May 987), also known as Louis the Do-Nothing (), was a king of West Francia from 979 (co-reigning first with his father Lothair until 986) to his early death in 987. During his reign, the nobility essentially ruled the country. ...

Lucas de Heere - View of the city of Ghent

Saint Bavo Church in

Aardenburg Aardenburg is a small city close to the Dutch border with Belgium. It is part of the Sluis Municipality, located in the province of Zeeland in the Netherlands. Its medieval name was Rodenburgh (Red Castle). In the Sint-Baafskerk, (Saint Bavo's C ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, was founded by monks of the abbey in 959.

John of Gaunt John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399), was an English royal prince, military leader and statesman. He was the fourth son (third surviving) of King Edward III of England, and the father of King Henry IV. Because ...

, the fourth son of

Edward III of England Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

and father of

Henry IV of England Henry IV ( – 20 March 1413), also known as Henry Bolingbroke, was King of England from 1399 to 1413. Henry was the son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (a son of King Edward III), and Blanche of Lancaster. Henry was involved in the 1388 ...

, was born in the abbey in 1340.

Raphael de Mercatellis Raphael de Mercatellis, also known as Raphael of Burgundy (1437 – 3 August 1508), was a church official, and bibliophile. He was the illegitimate son of Duke Philip the Good of Duke of Burgundy, Burgundy and a woman of Venice, Venetian origins, ...

was abbot of the abbey from 1478, and used money from the abbey to commission lavish

illuminated manuscript An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared manuscript, document where the text is decorated with flourishes such as marginalia, borders and Miniature (illuminated manuscript), miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Churc ...

s. In 1540,

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...

ordered the destruction of the abbey. A coercion castle, with its cannons directed at Ghent, was built on the location of the abbey.

References

{{coord, 51.0539, N, 3.7361, E, source:wikidata, display=title Christian monasteries in East Flanders Christian monasteries established in the 7th century 7th-century churches in Belgium Christian monasteries disestablished in the 16th century Buildings and structures demolished in 1540 Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor