Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The abbey of the Ternes was founded in 1338 by Roger Le Fort, son of Godefroy Le Fort, in his family castle of Pionnat. This heavenly monastery, inspired by Roger's meeting with the hermit Peter of Morrone (later Pope Celestin V), welcomed twelve monks and a prior. With income, a library and sacred ornaments, the abbey became a place of prayer and welcome for the poor, reflecting the devotion of its founder.

Roger Le Fort, who became bishop of Orléans, Limoges and then Bourges, died in 1367 without being able to be buried in the Ternes as desired. The abbey later housed figures such as Bernard d'Armagnac, a companion of Jeanne d'Arc, or Guillaume Reydier, 17th century archpriest. The church, now disappeared, was replaced in the 19th century by a bourgeois house.

In 1777, under pressure from the commission of the regulars, the last six monks left the abbey. The remaining convent buildings, including the turret gate and the former bakery, were classified as Historic Monuments in 1981. The site, privately owned, retains traces of its monastic past despite subsequent transformations.

The Celestines, recognizable by their white and black scapular tunic, marked local history. Their abbey, linked to personalities such as Pierre de Montbrun (Bishop of Limoges), illustrates the importance of religious orders in the Marche and Limousin before their decline in the late eighteenth century.

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