Moissac Abbey

Coordinates: 44°06′20″N 1°05′05″E / 44.105611°N 1.084611°E / 44.105611; 1.084611
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The Romanesque south door of the abbey church
The tympanum of the south-west portico
The prophet Jeremiah on the southern portal
Cloisters of Moissac Abbey

Moissac Abbey was a

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.

History

Foundation

According to legend, Moissac Abbey was founded by the Frankish king

federati of the Roman Empire
. He threw his javelin from the top of the hill to mark the spot where "abbey of a thousand monks" was to be built. Unfortunately the javelin landed in the middle of a swamp.

Historical records however indicate that it was founded by

bishop of Cahors
, in the middle of the 7th century.

The establishment of the monastery was difficult because of raids by

Hungarians
.

11th century

Consecration stone of the cloister

The 11th century was a dramatic time for the abbey. In 1030 the roof collapsed from lack of maintenance, and in 1042 there was a serious fire.

Odilon de Mercœur to bring in a sweeping reform to counter the laxity of the monks in 1047.[2]

A new

Papal Bull dated 7 May 1097 restoring 40 churches to the abbey;[3] he also ordered the construction of the cloister, completed in 1100.[4]

12th century

The 11th and 12th centuries were the first golden age, as Moissac was affiliated to the

bishop of Toulouse. Papal support, its location on the pilgrim road, the restoration of the buildings and the reforms of de Bredon made the abbey one of the most powerful in France. In the 12th century the abbot of Moissac was second in seniority within the Cluniac hierarchy only to the abbot of Cluny himself.[5][6]

During this era the abbey was led by major abbots Dom Hunaud de Gavarret and Dom Ansquitil, who had the doorway and tympanum built.[1] In the 13th century, Raymond de Montpezat, followed by Bertrand de Montaigut, abbots and builders, ruled the abbey. Aymeric de Peyrac, writing his Chronicle in the 15th century in the château of Saint-Nicolas-de-la-Grave, describes these times.

Illuminated manuscripts produced in the monastery's scriptorium were taken to Paris by

Bibliothèque Nationale.[7]

15th century

The 15th century ushered in a new golden age under the rule of abbots Pierre and Antoine de Caraman, whose building programme included in particular the Gothic part of the abbey church. The 1626 secularization of the abbey caused the

Augustinian canons, under commendatory abbots including well-known cardinals such as Mazarin and de Brienne
.

French Revolution

In 1793, the French Revolution put an end to monastic life in Moissac. The abbey church of St Pierre is relatively intact and is still an active church,[8] but the outlying buildings have suffered considerably. In the middle of the 19th century, the laying of a railway track threatened the cloister but it was saved (though the refectory was demolished to facilitate the railway cutting) and listed as a historic monument. Since 1998 the church and cloisters have had international protection as part of a World Heritage Site, "Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France".[9]

Architecture

Architectural features of interest include the church's south-west portico, a crenellated structure with sculpture that is a major masterpiece of Romanesque art. This reflected an expansion of image carving both in scope and size, and extended the use of sculpture from the sanctuary to the public exterior.[10]

The

cloisters
also feature Romanesque sculpture.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "St. Pierre Abbey", Moissac office du Tourisme
  2. ^ l'abbé Aymeric de Payrac dans sa chronique écrite (~1400), Paris Bibliothèque Nationale, ms. latin 4991-A, f.154 R, col. 1
  3. ^ E.Rupin, L'abbaye et les cloitres de Moissac, Picard, Paris, 1897, pp. 62–64
  4. ^ V.Mortet, Recueil de textes relatifs à l'histoire de l'architecture en France au Moyen Âge, XIe-XIIe siècle, Picard, Paris, 1911, pp. 146–148
  5. ^ Millénaire de Cluny (Mâcon, 1910), vol II, pp. 30–31
  6. ^ Pignot, Histoire de l'ordre de Cluny, vol II, p. 190
  7. ^ Léopold Delisle, Le cabinet des manuscrits, I, pp. 457–459
  8. ^ "Abbaye St Pierre de Moissac". Archived from the original on May 2, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  9. ^ Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France
  10. ISBN 9780801493041

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Abbaye Saint-Pierre de Moissac.

44°06′20″N 1°05′05″E / 44.105611°N 1.084611°E / 44.105611; 1.084611

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