Abbaye Saint-Wandrille de Fontenelle

Rives-en-Seine (Saint-Wandrille-Rançon)

Founded in 649 by Saint Wandrille on the right bank of the Seine, the abbey of Fontenelle was one of the great monastic and intellectual centres of early medieval Normandy, endowed with a rich Carolingian library. Destroyed or plundered several times – Viking invasions in the 9th century, the Wars of Religion in the 16th, then revolutionary confiscations – it was restored in its broad lines in the 17th century. The buildings have been listed as monuments historiques since 1862, and a community of Benedictine monks has lived there since 1894.

Getting there : Open to the public, shop, guesthouse and services

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound