La Trinité (Vendôme)

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La Trinité Abbey

The abbey of La Trinité in Vendôme was founded in 1034 by Count Geoffroy II Martel of Vendôme and his wife Agnes of Burgundy .

history

According to legend, one morning the count and his wife saw three flaming stars fall into a well below the castle. In astonishment, after consulting the Bishop of Chartres , Geoffrey ordered the building of a Benedictine abbey consecrated to the Trinity at this point, which was occupied by monks from the Marmoutier monastery near Tours . The foundation in 1034 was followed by the consecration of the abbey church on May 31, 1040, one month before Geoffrey became Count of Anjou .

The abbey grew and prospered, was relieved of all feudal duties, and was soon under the direct supervision of the Pope, which had already been confirmed by King Henry I in 1056 . A few years later, in 1063, the abbot received cardinal status , which in church history was only granted to the abbot of Cluny . Almost inevitably, the monastery, which had become powerful, soon came into conflict with the Counts of Vendôme, where they often had the upper hand: Count Geoffrey II of Vendôme was even excommunicated in a dispute with La Trinité , which he could only reverse by participating in the First Crusade from which he never returned.

From 1539 the monastery was ruled by commanding abbots, from 1621 La Trinité belonged to the Reform Congregation of Maurinians - one of the most important Maurinians, Luc d'Achery , made his religious vows here in 1632 . During the revolution , the monastery church was made a parish church and sold in 1791. From 1802 the monastery buildings housed the regional cavalry.

Restoration work on the abbey goes back to the architect Émile Boeswillwald (1815-1896), as did its classification as a Monument historique as early as 1840. Nevertheless, the monastery buildings were largely destroyed by their military users in 1907, and the remains are kept in a small museum on history des Vendômois kept. The manuscripts of the monastery were housed in the city library. The church and the remains of the abbey are now owned by the city.

architecture

The abbey church in its current form still contains elements of the simple first church in the transept and the pillars of the crossing . At the end of the 13th century, during the heyday of the abbey, the high Gothic apse was renovated, and in the middle of the 14th century the two eastern bays of the main nave were built. After a long hiatus due to the Hundred Years War , work began again and in 1492 the third and fourth yokes were completed. The others were created at the beginning of the 16th century together with the grandiose entrance front in the flamboyant style.

Due to the long construction time, several different architectural styles are now “gathered” in the nave, which can be seen from the change in the design of the pillars and the change in the types of profiles and ornaments.

With regard to the furnishings, the four colored Romanesque crossing columns should be noted. The glass paintings from the 16th century are also one of the special features of the church structure. The choir stalls, also from the 16th century, are decorated with grotesques, animal figures and scenes from the work that occurs over the course of the year.

On the outside, the Romanesque bell tower from the 12th century contrasts with the flames of the tracery on the west facade. The south wing was preserved from the 14th century cloister. Part of the former monastery building is now used as a museum; Wall paintings from the Loir Valley and regional religious art from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance are on display .

relic

The most important relic that was kept in the abbey were the "holy tears" of Jesus, which were kept in a small crystal ampoule as drops of water. It was they who made La Trinité an important place of pilgrimage from the 11th to the 18th century. Count Geoffroy Martel allegedly received them as a present from the Emperor of Constantinople after a victory over the Muslims. However, the relic was lost during the revolution on its transport from Vendôme to Rome.

Abbots

literature

  • C. Métais: Cartulaire de l'abbaye cardinale de la Trinité de Vendôme, 1893ff
  • Jean-Baptiste Thiers, dissertation on the Sainte Larme de Vendôme online
  • Jean Mabillon , Lettre d'un bénédictin à Monseigneur l'évesque de Blois touchant le discernement des anciennes reliques au sujet d'une dissertation de Mr Thiers contre la sainte larme de Vendôme online

Web links

Commons : Abbaye de la Trinité de Vendôme  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 47 ° 47 ′ 28 "  N , 1 ° 4 ′ 8"  E