Saint-Amand Abbey (Abbaye de Saint-Amand), once known as Elno, Elnon or Elnone Abbey, is a former Benedictine abbey in Saint-Amand-les-Eaux, Nord, France.
Saint-Amand Abbey (Abbaye de Saint-Amand), once known as Elno, Elnon or Elnone Abbey, is a former Benedictine abbey in Saint-Amand-les-Eaux, Nord, France.
The abbey was founded around 633-639 [1] [2] in what was once a great tract of uninhabited land in the Vicoigne Forest between the Scarpe and the brook called the Elnon , from which the monastery took its first name, Elnon or Elnone Abbey. The founder was Saint Amand of Maastricht, under the patronage of Dagobert I. The name of the saint eventually became applied both to the abbey and the village that grew up round it. [3] The abbot from about 652 was Jonatus. [4]
Apart from its considerable effect on the landscape, the abbey became a major centre of study during the Carolingian Renaissance. Notable members of the community included the 9th-century writer Milo of Saint-Amand, author of a metrical dictionary of Latin long and short syllables [5] as well as a Life of Saint Amand, and his nephew, Hucbald of Saint-Amand, a noted music theorist and composer.
The abbey was totally destroyed by the Normans at the end of the 9th century. It was devastated by fire in 1066 and, thanks to generous benefactors, was rebuilt and became the richest abbey in the region. [6] The abbey not completely restored until the 17th century, to an ambitious and much-admired plan implemented by Abbot Nicolas du Bois. In 1616-1617 Peter Paul Rubens painted a new high altarpiece for the monastery church, the Saint Stephen Triptych . [7]
In 1672, Dom Mabillon discovered that, at the end of a manuscript of works of Gregory Nazianzen, there is a praise poem of the late 9th century in Old German, the Ludwigslied , which commemorates the victory of the Frankish army of Louis III over the Vikings on 3 August 881 at the Battle of Saucourt-en-Vimeu. The same manuscript, now held at the municipal library of Valenciennes, was found to contain one of the earliest literary texts in vernacular French, the poem called Sequence of Saint Eulalia . The Annales sancti Amandi , a set of annals of the Frankish kingdom, also originate from Saint-Amand. [8]
The abbey was declared national property in 1789, and mostly demolished between 1797 and 1820. [9] The former courthouse (échevinage) and the exuberantly decorated church tower, which now accommodates a faience museum, survive and can still be visited.
Louis III was King of West Francia from 879 until his death in 882. Despite questions of his legitimacy and challenges against his ascendance to the monarchy, Louis would prove to be an effective leader during his reign, notable for the defeat of Viking invaders at the Battle of Saucourt-en-Vimeu in August 881 that would later be immortalized in the poem Ludwigslied. He also led a less successful military campaign against Boso of Provence with help from Charles the Fat.
Amandus, 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.
The Sequence of Saint Eulalia, also known as the Canticle of Saint Eulalia is the earliest surviving piece of French hagiography and one of the earliest extant texts in the vernacular langues d'oïl. It dates from around 880.
Hucbald was a Benedictine monk active as a music theorist, poet, composer, teacher, and hagiographer. He was long associated with Saint-Amand Abbey, so is often known as Hucbald of St Amand. Deeply influenced by Boethius' De Institutione Musica, Hucbald's (De) Musica, formerly known as De harmonica institutione, aims to reconcile ancient Greek music theory and the contemporary practice of Gregorian chant with the use of many notated examples. Among the leading music theorists of the Carolingian era, he was likely a near contemporary of Aurelian of Réôme, the unknown author of the Musica enchiriadis, and the anonymous authors of other music theory texts Commemoratio brevis, Alia musica, and De modis.
The Archdiocese of Cambrai is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France, comprising the arrondissements of Avesnes-sur-Helpe, Cambrai, Douai, and Valenciennes within the département of Nord, in the region of Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The current archbishop is Vincent Dollmann, appointed in August 2018. Since 2008 the archdiocese has been a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Lille.
Saint-Amand-les-Eaux is a commune in the Nord department, northern France. It lies on the river Scarpe, 12 km northwest of Valenciennes. In French, the town people are named Amandinois (m), Amandinoise (f).
The Ludwigslied is an Old High German (OHG) poem of 59 rhyming couplets, celebrating the victory of the Frankish army, led by Louis III of France, over Danish (Viking) raiders at the Battle of Saucourt-en-Vimeu on 3 August 881.
Pontigny Abbey, the church of which in recent decades has also been the cathedral of the Mission de France, otherwise the Territorial Prelature of Pontigny, was a Cistercian monastery located in Pontigny on the River Serein, in the present diocese of Sens and department of Yonne, Burgundy, France. Founded in 1114, it was the second of the four great daughter houses of Cîteaux Abbey. It was suppressed in 1791 in the French Revolution and destroyed except for the church. In 1843 it was re-founded as a community of the Fathers of St. Edmund. In 1909 it passed into private ownership. In 1941 it became the mother house of the Mission de France, a territorial prelature.
The Abbey of Saint-Victor is a former abbey that was founded during the late Roman period in Marseille in the south of France, named after the local soldier saint and martyr, Victor of Marseilles.
Saint Germanus of Granfelden was the first abbot of Moutier-Grandval Abbey. He is venerated as a martyr saint in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches.
Ouche Abbey or the Abbey of Saint-Evroul is a former Benedictine abbey in Normandy, located in the present commune of Saint-Évroult-Notre-Dame-du-Bois, Orne, Normandy. It has been classified as a Monument historique since 1967 and is designated "classé".
The Abbey of Saint Bertin was a Benedictine monastic abbey in Saint-Omer, France. The buildings are now in ruins, which are open to the public. It was initially dedicated to Saint Peter but was rededicated to its second abbot, Saint Bertin. The abbey is known for its Latin cartulary whose first part is attributed to Folcwin.
Bonneval Abbey, also known as St. Florentinus' Abbey, is a former Benedictine monastery in Bonneval, Eure-et-Loir, in France.
Anchin Abbey was a Benedictine monastery founded in 1079 in the commune of Pecquencourt in what is now the Nord department of France.
Marchiennes Abbey was a French monastery located on the Scarpe in Marchiennes. It was founded around 630 by Adalbard of Douai, and Irish monks, disciples of Saint Columbanus, on the advice of Saint Amand. One of its founders was Rictrude, who made it double monastery in 643. In around 1024 it became monastery of men again and adopted the Benedictine rule. On the birth of the town of Marchiennes the abbey became its economic motor until being suppressed in 1791 during the French Revolution. In 1814 all but its 1748 gatehouse was demolished. Its remains were inscribed on the inventory of monuments historiques on 17 May 1974,
Moissac Abbey was a Benedictine and Cluniac monastery in Moissac, Tarn-et-Garonne in south-western France. A number of its medieval buildings survive, including the abbey church, which has a famous and important Romanesque sculpture around the entrance.
Adalbert I of Ostrevent was a 7th-century Frankish nobleman of the court of King Clovis II of France. He is recognized as a saint, and is commemorated on both 2 February and 2 May.
Nivelles Abbey is a former Imperial Abbey of the Holy Roman Empire founded in 640. It is located in Nivelles, Walloon Brabant, Belgium.
Saint-Maur Abbey, originally called the Abbaye des Fossés, is a former abbey now subsumed in the Saint-Maur-des-Fossés suburb of Paris, France. The remains and the domain of the abbey have been transformed into a pleasure park named Parc de l'abbaye. The former abbey building has been replaced by a square at the corner of Avenue de Condé and Rue de l'Abbaye. Some ruins remain, such as the Rabelais tower, the 19th century Bourières villa and the old fortifications. The remains of the abbey have been classified as historical monuments since 13 June 1988.
Solignac Abbey, or the Abbey of Saint-Peter and Saint Paul of Solignac, is an abbey in Solignac, near Limoges, in Haute-Vienne. It was founded around 631 AD by Saint Eligius (Éloi). The present buildings date to the 12th century, but have been modified many times since then. The abbey was dissolved during the French Revolution and the buildings were put to new uses, including a prison, boarding school, porcelain factory and seminary. As of 2021 there were plans to restore it back to its original function as a monastery.
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