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Origin and history

Notre-Dame de Quincy Abbey, founded in 1133 by twelve monks of Pontigny Abbey, is a Cistercian abbey located in Tanlay (Yonne). It has a period of initial prosperity, with a community of 150 monks, barns, mills and wine cellars. The abbey church, consecrated in 1139, serves as a necropolis for the family of Courtenay, close to the French kingship. From the 13th century, internal conflicts and neighbourhood disputes disrupted its functioning.

In the 15th century, after the damage caused by the Hundred Years' War, the abbey regained some prosperity. However, the wars of religion marked a tragic turning point: the merchant abbot, Cardinal de Coligny, converted to Protestantism, and the monks were massacred in a fire. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the abbey declined, before being sold as a national property in 1791. The cloister and church were destroyed, and the remaining buildings became a farm in 1822.

Since recent years, the remains of the abbey, released from agricultural use, have been the subject of restoration work. In 2022, a Benedictine monk, Dom Boniface Hill, moved back to the site, marking a spiritual renewal. The remaining buildings, including the 15th century abbey house and part of the monks' building, have been classified as historical monuments since 1926. The abbey is now open to visitors, offering an architectural and historical testimony of the Cistercian order.

The abbey was organized according to the typical Cistercian plan: a cloister surrounded by the church in the north, the capitular hall and dormitory in the east, the refectory in the south, and a building for conversants in the west. Architectural changes, such as the 15th century stair turret or the church's classical façade, reflect its evolution until the 18th century. Today, only elements of the monks' building, the Abbatial house, a lower yard and a reception room remain.

Located in a valley crossed by the Melisey Ru, the abbey used local resources (wood, stone, water) for its operation, with three mills installed on the stream. 10 km from Tonnerre, it was a major economic and spiritual centre, linked to barns and urban houses in the area, such as Auxerre or Chablis.

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