General view of the complex.

Tomb of Richard I of England and Isabella of Angoulême (at back)

Courtyard inside Fontevraud Abbey.

Fontevraud Abbey (or Fontevrault Abbey) is located in the village of Fontevraud-l'Abbaye, near Chinon, in Anjou, France. It was founded by the itinerant reforming preacher Robert of Arbrissel, who had just created a new order, the Order of Fontevrault. The first permanent structures were built between 1110 and 1119. Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Download high resolution version (2048x1536, 1331 KB)Tomb of Richard I of England at Fontevraud Abbey near Chinon, in Anjou, France. ... Download high resolution version (2048x1536, 1331 KB)Tomb of Richard I of England at Fontevraud Abbey near Chinon, in Anjou, France. ... Image File history File links Fontevraud. ... Image File history File links Fontevraud. ... Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Fontevraud-lAbbaye is a commune of the Maine-et-Loire département, in France. ... Illustration of Chinon, circa 1892 For other uses, see Chinon (disambiguation). ... Modern département of Maine-et-Loire, which largely corresponds to Anjou Anjou is a former county (c. ... Robert of Arbrissel (c. ... Events December 4 - First Crusade: The Crusaders conquer Sidon. ... Events February 2 - Callixtus II becomes Pope August 20 - Henry I of England routes Louis VI at the Battle of Bremule. ...

History

The abbey was a double monastery, with both monks and nuns on the same site. The order became an international success. There were several "Fontevrist" abbeys set up in England. Robert of Arbrissel declared that the leader of the order should always be a woman and appointed Petronille de Chemillé as the first abbess. She was succeeded by Isabella d'Anjou, the aunt of Henry II of England. This was the start of a position that attracted many rich and noble abbesses over the years, including members of the French Bourbon royal family. Louise de Bourbon left her crest on many of the alterations she made during her term of office. In the early years the Plantagenets were great benefactors of the abbey and while Isabella d'Anjou was abbess, Henry II's wife Eleanor of Aquitaine became a nun there. A double monastery is an institution combining a separate monastery for monks and an abbey for nuns. ... Isabella dAnjou (c. ... Henry II of England (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189) ruled as King of England (1154–1189), Count of Anjou, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. ... An Abbess (Latin abbatissa, fem. ... Also see:  Early Modern France The House of Bourbon is an important European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty. ... Angevin is the name applied to two distinct medieval dynasties which originated as counts (from 1360, dukes) of the western French province of Anjou (of which angevin is the adjectival form), but later came to rule far greater areas including England, Hungary and Poland (see Angevin Empire). ... Eleanor of Aquitaine Eleanor of Aquitaine (or Aliénor), Duchess of Aquitaine and Gascony and Countess of Poitou (1122[1] – April 1, 1204) was one of the wealthiest and most powerful women in Europe during the High Middle Ages. ...

During the French Revolution, the order was dissolved. The last abbess, Madame d'Antin, died in poverty in Paris. On 17 August, 1792, a Revolutionary decree ordered evacuation of all monasteries, to be completed by 1 October, 1792. The abbey later became a prison from 1804 to 1963, in which year it was given to the French Ministry of Culture. The French Revolution (1789–1815) was a period of political and social upheaval in the political history of France and Europe as a whole, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on... This article is about the capital of France. ... 1804 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... For other uses, see 1963 (disambiguation). ... The Minister of Culture and Communications is, in the Government of France, the cabinet member in charge of national museums and monuments; promoting and protecting the arts (visual, plastic, theatrical, musical, dance, architectural, literary, televisual and cinematographic) in France and abroad; and managing the national archives and regional maisons de...

The restoration of the Abbey-Church was finished about 1906 under the direction of the architect Lucien Magne.^[1]

Features

The abbey contains the tombs of King Henry II of England, his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, their son King Richard I of England, their daughter Joan, their grandson Raymond VII of Toulouse, and Isabella of Angoulême, wife of their son King John. Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England and ruler of the Angevin Empire from 6 July 1189 until his death. ... Joan of England (October, 1165 – 4 September 1199) was the seventh child of King Henry II of England and his Queen consort, Eleanor of Aquitaine. ... Raymond VII of Saint-Gilles (July, 1197 - September 27, 1249) was count of Toulouse, duke of Narbonne and marquis of Provence. ... Isabella of Angouleme (c. ... John of England depicted in Cassells History of England (1902) John (French: Jean) (December 24, 1166/67–October 18/19, 1216) reigned as King of England from 1199 to 1216. ...

Miscellaneous

Jean Genet wrote about his experiences as a thirty-year-old prisoner at Fontevrault in his semi-autobiographical novel, Miracle de la rose. Jean Genet (French IPA: ) (December 19, 1910) – April 15, 1986), was a prominent, controversial French writer and later political activist. ... The Miracle of the Rose (French: Miracle de la rose) is a 1946 book by Jean Genet about his experiences as a detainee at Mettray Youth detention centre and Fontevrault prison. ...

Notes

Gare dOrsay site seen from The Louvre in March 2006. ...

External links

• http://www.abbaye-fontevraud.com
• Catholic Encyclopedia article
• Romanes.com: Pictures from the abbey
• Aerial views

Coordinates: 47°10′53″N, 0°03′06″E Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...