St Benoît sur Loire, an abbey built on a sacred pagan site
The church of St Benoît sur Loire is the only remaining vestige of the Abbaye de Fleury. Benedictine monks founded Fleury Abbey on the site of an ancient pagan sacred place where druids from all over Gaul gathered annually. This led Julius Caesar to nickname Fleury the “navel of Gaul.”
The druids did not choose this location by chance. Numerous springs within a 10-kilometre radius and their streams irrigate the silt, making this enclave one of the most fertile areas in the Loire Valley. Our pagan ancestors venerated these sacred springs dedicated to the goddess of fertility, as evidenced by the many votive objects unearthed around Fleury.
Abbot Leodobod recognised the exceptional fertility of the soil, and acquired land in Floriacum, then aptly known as Val d’Or, to establish the abbey. Upon his death in 651 AD, he bequeathed the abbey and its lands to his monks. However, the monks had to be resourceful to Christianize this region, which was deeply steeped in pagan culture. They dedicated each sacred spring to a Christian saint and dug wells and fountains nearby. One of these sacred springs is still known today as the Fountain of Saint Sebastian.
St. Benedict of Nursia’s relics in St Benoît sur Loire Abbey
In 703 AD, Mommole, the second abbot of Fleury, sent his monks to steal the relics of Saint Benedict (Saint Benoît) from the old Monte Casino Abbey.
The monks returned not only with the relics of the holy man, but also with those of his sister, Sainte Scholastica. They rewarded the monks of Le Mans, who had helped them, by giving them the holy woman’s relics.
Although the Italian monks denounced the theft, the Pope eventually allowed Fleury to keep the relics of Saint Benedict. Pilgrimage to the shrine of Saint Benedict became very popular, and Fleury became one of the most influential abbeys in the country.
At the end of the 8th century, Emperor Charlemagne bequeathed Fleury to his advisor and Bishop of Orléans, Theodulf. Theodulf founded a monastic school, which became one of the most influential in Europe, with branches in France and England.
The abbey’s prosperity was obviously affected by the Norman invasions of the 9th century. However, with each Viking raid, the precious relics were taken to safety in the nearby fortified town of Orléans.
The revival of the abbey
Abbot Odo played a pivotal role in Fleury’s revival by establishing a new monastic rule in 930.
When the monk Abbo took over the department of religious studies in 975, the abbey had fully regained its former renown. Abbo, a renowned scholar and professor trained at Fleury, dedicated himself to developing this department and significantly enriching the library. By 988, when Abbo became abbot, Fleury was already the most important centre of religious studies in Europe.
Abbot Gauzin, the illegitimate son of King Hugues Capet, succeeded Abbo. He commissioned the creation of an illuminated manuscript known as the Gaignières Gospel. Tragically, an accidental fire destroyed Fleury Abbey in 1026. The reconstruction of the present church began two years later. Gauzin supervised the construction of the splendid Romanesque bell tower and porch. His successors completed the choir, transept and crypt in 1108.
Decline and revival of the abbey
St Benoît sur Loire Abbey entered a long period of gradual decline when it was given in commendam. The commendatory abbots were no longer elected from among the monks, but were appointed by the king, and came from the nobility.
They performed no monastic duties and had no authority over the its internal monastic discipline but enjoyed all the privileges associated with their office, including revenues generated by the abbey. This abusive status provoked deep discontent among the monks, leading to several revolts.
Decline reached its peak during the Wars of Religion in the 16th century. Odet de Coligny, commendatory abbot and brother of Admiral Coligny, the Protestant leader, indeed ravaged the abbey. He let Protestant troops to plunder, steal, and melt down the treasury, including the gold reliquary containing the relics of Saint Benedict.
They also squandered the exceptional library that had been established over the previous seven centuries. More than 2,000 priceless manuscripts were scattered across Europe, and most were never to be recovered!
The arrival of the monks of the Order of Saint Maur in 1627 breathed new life into the spiritual and intellectual life of the abbey. However, with the outbreak of the French Revolution, the monks were expelled, the ababye sold and pulled down at the beginning of the 19th century, leaving only the church, which gradually fell into ruin.
Fortunately, the church of St Benoît sur Loire was listed as a historical monument in 1835, which allowed restoration work to be undertaken from 1835 to 1923.
The new religious community that settled in St Benoît sur Loire in 1944 undertook the restoration of the church and convent, reviving monastic life and the precious tradition of Gregorian chants, in which it excels.
St Benoît sur Loire Church
One of the most remarkable architectural features of the abbey church is its 11th-century bell tower porch, considered a magnificent example of Romanesque architecture.
Each column capital is indeed finely sculpted in the purest Romanesque tradition, adorned with a rich profusion of leaves, plants, and depictions of frightening or comical animals, as well as human heads symbolising hell and its torments. These grotesque sculptures were indeed intended to inspire fear in parishioners as they passed through the porch, encouraging them to seek refuge in the church under divine protection.
The lantern tower was replaced in 1661, while the bright nave features splendid ribbed vaults and a dome, completed around 1170, at a time when the Gothic style was beginning to supplant the Romanesque style. The vast Romanesque chancel was designed to accommodate large assemblies; Its floor is adorned with a mosaic imported from Italy in the 16th century.
The church boasts a unique sculpture: the small Viking head with pierced cheeks, in the north transept in the 12th century. This sculpture served as a talisman and protected the church from paganism. Finally, the relics of Saint Benedict are in the 11th-century crypt, in a small niche carved into the altar’s supporting pillar.
Daily services, with Gregorian chant, are open to the public at the Church of Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire.
Department of Loiret
Coordinates: Lat 47.809329 – Long 2.305337
Photos via Wikimedia Commons: Romanesque architecture by Johan Allard CC BY-SA 4.0 – Nave and abside by Nguyenld CC BY-SA 3.0 – Lithography abbey by Jchancerel CC BY-SA 4.0
