Basilique Notre-Dame-des-Ardilliers

Saumur

This sanctuary grew up in Saumur around a statue of the Virgin and a fountain reputed to work miracles, in the suburb of Les Ardilliers, drawing crowds of pilgrims from the 16th century onwards to the fountain and the statue. The growth of the pilgrimage led, in the neighbouring suburb of Fenet, to the rise of a local craft industry making rosaries and devotional objects. The basilica was frequented by the nobility and the court, including Anne of Austria, who made many Marian pilgrimages in the provinces during her reign.

Getting there : Former royal chapel of the Marian sanctuary, one of the great places of Marian pilgrimage under the Ancien Régime

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

Ambient sound