Clairefontaine Abbey

Coordinates: 49°39′57″N 5°51′57″E / 49.66583°N 5.86583°E / 49.66583; 5.86583
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Ruins of the Abbey

The remains of the former Abbey of Notre-Dame de Clairefontaine are located in Wallonia near Clairefontaine, a Belgian hamlet belonging to the city of Arlon, 3 km from the Luxembourgish town of Eischen.[1]

History

The valley has been inhabited since Roman times and castle Bardenbourg, in which amongst others

Bernard de Fontaine
, who became a saint. It was said that he had been told that someone in the lord of Bardenbourg's family was very ill. Thereupon he got water from a spring not far from the castle, and blessed the sick person with this water. The latter made a miraculous recovery, and this is said to be the origin of the name "Clairefontaine". The water is still said to have healing properties.

About a hundred years later, Ermesinde had a vision, apparently

Henry V the Blond who constructed the abbey.[3] It was first mentioned in records in 1250.[4]

The abbey was destroyed by

The inhabitants of surrounding areas used the stones of the abbey to build their houses.

Around 1875 the Jesuits of Arlon built a new chapel on the place of the old abbey. Ermesinde's remains are now in the crypt of the chapel of Clairefontaine.

References

  1. ^ "L'abbaye cistercienne", Paroisse Saint Martin. (in French) Retrieved 16 October 2013.
  2. ^ "Clairefontaine", Cister.net
  3. ^ P. Péporté, Historiography, Collective Memory and Nation-Building in Luxembourg, (Brill, 2011), 115. – via Brill (subscription required)
  4. ^ "Fondation de l'abbaye", Paroisse Saint Martin. (in French) Retrieved 16 October 2013.
  5. ^ P. Péporté, Historiography, Collective Memory and Nation-Building in Luxembourg, 118.

Literature

  • Bisdorff, Georgette (2012). Clairefontaine, un site médiéval, archéologique et historique. Die Warte: Perspectives 19|2369, 14 June 2012, pages 10–12.
  • Bulletin trimestriel de l'Institut d'Archéologie du Luxembourg, no 3-4, page 163-245, "L'abbaye cistercienne de Clairefontaine - Du rêve d'Ermesinde aux réalités archéologiques", Arlon, 2010.

External links

49°39′57″N 5°51′57″E / 49.66583°N 5.86583°E / 49.66583; 5.86583