Abbeys monasteries and convents Rhônes-Alpes

In the heart of the Haut-Chablais, on a 2 hectare estate, the remains of one of the most important Cistercian abbeys in medieval Savoy. Aulps Abbey has been a place of pilgrimage since the 11th century. Founded in 1095 by monks who had left the abbey of Molesme in Burgundy, the abbey of Notre-Dame-d'Aulps became independent in 1120 and Guérin de Pont-à-Mousson, the second abbot of Aulps and bishop of Sion, died there in 1150. He was soon venerated as the patron saint of livestock. The last Cistercian monks were expelled in 1792 by the revolutionaries. After the fire of 1823, the inhabitants of the village recovered its stones to rebuild their houses. Only the remains of the abbey church, the gatehouse, the cellars and the old monastic farm remain. However, these ruins have a lot of allure and the site is remarkable in more ways than one! The church has preserved its magnificent 13th century façade and the glorious abbey was classified as a historical monument in 1902. Today, it houses an interpretation center, a store, an herbal tea room, a medieval garden and vegetable garden. There is an exhibition on the daily life of the monks, their community, the history of the Duchy of Savoy in the Middle Ages and the secrets of medicinal plants. You can discover the abbey as it was before its destruction with the 3D augmented reality application Abbayedaulps and the helmets available for rent at the reception. A unique experience!

In 1084, seven monks in search of a secluded place were led to a raised valley above the Guiers Mort, itself dominated by the Grand Som (2,026 m). The travellers settled in. One of the monks, Saint Bruno, created the Carthusian monastic order. The Grande Chartreuse Monastery was born and the isolated site became known as the "Chartreuse Desert". During the centuries that followed, many Carthusian monasteries were created throughout the world. The monastery cannot be visited.

The history of the abbey is closely linked to the relics of Saint Antoine the Egyptian, with miraculous virtues, reported in Dauphiné circa 1070. Indeed, these relics would have the virtue of healing one of the scourges of the Middle Ages, the "evil of the Ardents" or "the Fire of Saint Anthony" which led to dementia. So it was around these relics that Benedictine monks built a church church from the th century. But these monks will soon be replaced by république, a hospital order of medical monks, while the abbey expands in a remarkable Gothic style. Knowing its fertile period during the th and th centuries, the abbey radiates through the Christian world, while important works make it one of the most flamboyant achievements, both by its architecture and its decoration. Impressive by its dimensions, 62 metres long, 32 metres wide and 22 metres high (larger than high, the abbey was first destined to receive many pilgrims), the whole lack neither grace nor elegance with its frescoes, statues and treasures. The abbatial buildings, attached to the Gothic church, allow to discover the République lifestyle and the power of order.