Saint-Laurent-l'Abbaye
Saint-Laurent-l'Abbaye | |
|---|---|
.svg) Coat of arms | |
 Location of Saint-Laurent-l'Abbaye | |
  Saint-Laurent-l'Abbaye Location within France  Saint-Laurent-l'Abbaye Location within Bourgogne-Franche-Comté | |
| Coordinates: 47°20′36″N 2°59′32″E / 47.3433°N 2.9922°E | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Bourgogne-Franche-Comté |
| Department | Nièvre |
| Arrondissement | Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire |
| Canton | Pouilly-sur-Loire |
| Intercommunality | Cœur de Loire |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2024–2026) | Jean Bertin[1] |
Area 1 | 1.41 km2 (0.54 sq mi) |
| Population (2023)[2] | 216 |
| • Density | 153/km2 (397/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 58248 /58150 |
| Elevation | 162–201 m (531–659 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
Saint-Laurent-l'Abbaye (French pronunciation: [sɛ̃ loʁɑ̃ labei], before 2001: Saint-Laurent)[3] is a commune in the Nièvre department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of central France, located approximately 9 km south-east of Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire.[4]
Abbey
[edit]The commune takes its name from the Abbey of Saint-Laurent, which gave rise to the village. The site has housed a religious establishment since at least the 6th century, when a monastery dedicated to Saint Lawrence was founded, traditionally attributed to Wulfin, a prince of royal blood, who dedicated it to Saint Lawrence.[5] The establishment was initially known as the Monastery of Saint-Wulfin or Longrest (Longoretense monasterium).
Around 1084, Robert of Nevers, Bishop of Auxerre, entrusted the monastery to Augustinian canons and elevated it to the status of an abbey.[5] The abbey served as a resting point on the Way of St. James (Camino de Santiago) and at its height in the late 12th century was considered nearly as influential as the Priory of La Charité.[5] In 1199, the area around the abbey was the scene of battles between Pierre de Courtenay, Count of Nevers, and Hervé de Donzy.[5]
The abbey was severely damaged during the Hundred Years' War and the French Wars of Religion, being almost entirely ruined by 1567.[6] It was partially restored in the 17th century, but the remaining community of monks dispersed shortly before the French Revolution.[5] Following the Revolution, the buildings were sold to private individuals; a fire in 1816 destroyed part of the structure, and the church bell tower collapsed in 1948.[7]
The 12th-century Romanesque portal of the abbey church was acquired by an antiquarian dealer in 1922 and sold in 1928 to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where it remains today.[7] In 1980, a local association (A.S.P.A.S.) was founded to promote and safeguard the abbey site. On 18 July 1996, the surviving vestiges of the abbey were listed as a monument historique.[6] In 2022, local historian and benefactress Jeanne Pautrat (1917–2022) bequeathed €1 million to the Caisse pour les Monuments et les Sites de la Nièvre (Camosine) for the restoration of the site.[7]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 12 March 2025.
- ↑ "Populations de référence 2023" (in French). National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 18 December 2025.
- ↑ "Décret du 1er février 2001 portant changement de nom de communes" (in French). Légifrance.
- ↑ "Saint-Laurent-l'Abbaye" (in French). INSEE.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Abbaye Saint-Laurent" (in French). Nièvre Tourisme. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
- 1 2 "Ancienne abbaye Saint-Laurent – PA00113003". Monumentum. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Ils veulent remonter cette abbaye en ruine" (in French). Aleteia. 30 September 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
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