FONTGOMBAULT ABBEY

Known the world over, this Benedictine abbey is a place of peace, essentially devoted to meditation. Pierre de l'Étoile and his fellow hermits founded it in 1091 on a bank of the Creuse river, and adopted the rule of Saint Benedict. It grew considerably during the 12th^and 13th^centuries , with some twenty priories founded. In 1741, the Benedictines were replaced by Lazarists, then in 1849 by Trappists, who went into exile in the USA in 1904. From 1919 to 1948, a diocesan seminary for late vocations was established in part of the buildings. Some twenty Benedictines from Solesme took over the abbey in 1948. Today, the community is made up of around 60 monks, who support themselves through a variety of activities, including stoneware pottery, enamels and authentic icons. They also run their own farming estate, where they raise livestock, grow fruit and vegetables. The monastery guesthouse is the perfect place for a retreat, where you can enjoy monastic services and the silence of the setting.

The abbey church is well worth a visit. The choir has double aisles and five radiating apsidal chapels. Its arcaded windows and large bays around the perimeter of the ambulatory make it luminous. The abbey church still has its original facade, and has the particularity of being totally self-sufficient in terms of energy, thanks to the presence of a power station on the Creuse River.

Offices : Lauds at 6am; mass read between 6:35 and 7am; prime at 8:15am; sung mass at 10am; sext at 12:50pm; vespers at 2:35pm on weekdays and 3pm on Sundays. Compline open to the public on major feast days only. Variable hours on feast days and Thursdays from May to September.

Accommodation : 32 single rooms for men within the monastery, meals shared with the monks. Single and family rooms for women and groups in houses adjoining the monastery, meals paid for by retreatants. The porter's office, which welcomes all arrivals (guests, visitors, tourists, monks' families...) is open from 11:15am to 12:45pm and from 2:00pm to 5:55pm.

Store: open Monday to Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. (except Thursday afternoons). Sale of stoneware pottery, enamels, icons, Gregorian chant CDs, books, gourmet products (fruit jellies, jams, honeys).