ABBAYE ET CATHÉDRALE NOTRE-DAME-D’ALET
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Benedictine abbey, founded around 813 AD, with a Romanesque abbey church and a wooden fragment of the Holy Cross in Alet.
The history of Alet is closely linked to that of its Benedictine abbey, founded around 813 by Béra Comte du Razès and his wife Romille, dedicated to Notre-Dame and a major pilgrimage centre in the 11th century. In fact, it appears to have possessed a priceless relic, a wooden fragment of the Holy Cross, the object of great veneration, and a multitude of offerings from the faithful, which fed the abbey's coffers. In 1096, it was visited by Pope Urban II. Transformed into a cathedral in 1318, the Romanesque abbey church features a large Gothic choir and sculpted decor of antique and medieval inspiration. The abbey seat of Alet was made a bishopric by Pope John XXII. Over the centuries, the church was built, demolished and rebuilt... and finally demolished in 1792. Today, the imposing, beautiful ochre sandstone ruins are considered by some to be "the most beautiful ruins in France". They are open to visitors and provide a fabulous natural backdrop for musical and theatrical performances every summer. The abbey's reception area has a store where you'll find a wide selection of books on the region and the Middle Ages, especially for children, as well as postcards and local products such as lemonade made in Alet with the village's own spring water, and biscotins d'Alet, delicious little dry cakes worth discovering.
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