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Origin and history

The Abbey of La Ferté, founded in 1113 by Abbé Étienne Harding de Cîteaux, is the first of the four girls abbeys of the Cistercian Order, with Pontigny, Clairvaux and Morimond. Located between the forest of Bragny and the marshes of the Grosne, it enjoys the support of the Dukes of Burgundy and local lords, especially the Gros de Brancion. Its central role in Cistercian expansion made it a strategic place in the Middle Ages.

In the 12th century, the abbey was at the heart of conflicts between Duke Hugues III of Burgundy and the Counts of Macon and Chalon, requiring partial reconstruction. In 1362 it was occupied by the Tard-Venus, then fortified in 1415 with a wall and a drawbridge. These defences proved insufficient in 1570, when the Protestant troops of Coligny set fire to the monastery, saving only the church, sacristy and capitular hall.

Reconstruction began at the end of the 16th century under Father Yves Sauvageot, who restored the dormitory and embellished the church. In the 17th century, Claude Petit erected the abbey house and cloister, while fortifications were destroyed. Around 1760 François Filzjean de Chemilly modernized the avant-corps of the house, adorned with his weapons. In 1777, the architect Rameau remodeled the interior decor, with the help of sculptor Guillaume Boichot.

During the Revolution, the abbey, occupied by workers of a cotton mill, was sold as a national property in 1791. Only the abbey house (now the Château de la Ferté) and some outbuildings remain. Ranked a Historic Monument in 1993, the site is now linked to the legacy of Baron Thénard, descendant of chemist Louis Jacques Thénard, who owned it in the 20th century.

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