Cistercian abbeySarthe
Église abbatiale de l'Abbaye royale de l'Épau
Yvré-l'Évêque (Le Mans)
Dimensions
13th-century Cistercian abbey church, abbey founded in 1229–1230, listed as a monument historique in 1925
Period
Ghost legend not precisely dated; the queen's effigy rediscovered in 1816, moved several times before returning to the abbey in 1974 — the "white lady" story reported by a single source available online
What stands there
The effigy of Berengaria of Navarre is one of the rare medieval royal effigies preserved in France, on view in the chapter house
According to local tradition, the ghost of Queen Berengaria of Navarre, widow of Richard the Lionheart and founder of the abbey in 1229, still haunts the place in the form of a "white lady" glimpsed in the corridors and gardens. What is historically established: her effigy, rediscovered in 1816, was moved several times before regaining its place in the abbey in 1974. The ghost story itself is for now documented by only one available source.
Journée Mondiale — La Dame Blanche de l'abbaye de l'Épau ↗
Getting there : Route de Changé, 72530 Yvré-l'Évêque, abbey open to visitors (Sarthe Culture)
Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.
Ambient sound
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Nearby
- Abbaye Royale de l'ÉpauCistercian abbey · Yvré-l'Évêque · 2.5 km
- Cathédrale Saint-Julien du MansCathedral · Le Mans · 3.3 km
- Forêt de Bercé — Futaie des ClosLegendary forest · Jupilles · 25 km
- Château de BonnétableLegendary castle · Bonnétable · 25 km
- If millénaire de JauzéVenerable tree · Jauzé · 27 km
- Basilique Notre-Dame-du-ChêneChurch · Vion · 33 km
This place in the great stories
- Eleanor and the Plantagenets: an empire from Bordeaux to Scotland (1137-1204)Marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Louis VII at Bordeaux on 25 July 1137; annulment at…
In the same department
All places — Sarthe (11).