Foundation by Abbé Foucault 1096 (≈ 1096)
Opposition to Benedictine Reform, Hermit to Fons Cancellatus.
1128
Blessing of the First Abbé
Blessing of the First Abbé 1128 (≈ 1128)
Gérard de Montlau, beginning of monastic constructions.
12 octobre 1147
Consecration of churches
Consecration of churches 12 octobre 1147 (≈ 1147)
Abbatial church and dedicated parish chapel.
1360-1367
English occupation
English occupation 1360-1367 (≈ 1364)
Monastery turned into garrison during the war.
1575
Destruction by the Huguenots
Destruction by the Huguenots 1575 (≈ 1575)
Fire, nave and Romanesque choir destroyed.
1622-1638
Reconstruction by Solminihac
Reconstruction by Solminihac 1622-1638 (≈ 1630)
Church, cloister and house rebuilt, spiritual reform.
1790
Sale as a national good
Sale as a national good 1790 (≈ 1790)
Partial dispersal of archives and libraries.
1909
First MH ranking
First MH ranking 1909 (≈ 1909)
Protection of the abbey church.
1998
Replacement of canons
Replacement of canons 1998 (≈ 1998)
Return of religious life after 200 years.
2019-2025
Renovation of the Abbey house
Renovation of the Abbey house 2019-2025 (≈ 2022)
Works at EUR 2.8 million.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Abbatial Church (Cd. AC 121): by order of 30 July 1909 - Facades and roofs of former abbatial buildings (AC 113, 123, formerly A 453, 454): inscription by decree of 2 March 1959 - Façades and roofs of the building known as Logis Bourdeilles (presbytery) (cad. AC 122, formerly A 452): classification by decree of 4 July 1959 - Façades and roofs of the old abbey buildings with the floors and fences of the gardens (cad. AC 111, 123 to 125, 128, formerly A 439, 448 to 451): inscription by decree of 9 October 1959 - All buildings, the small bridge and floors, including the walls of the enclosure and the terraces of the garden, except buildings or parts of buildings and floors that have already been classified or registered (cf. AC 113, 118, 125, 132: abbey buildings; AC 119, 120, 126, 128 to 131, 133, 134, 364, 367, 369, 447 to 452: terraces, gardens and fences; the public domain of the commune formed by the square of the abbey on the Parcel AC 139 and the Route des Carrières - not cadastral - west of the abbey): inscription by order of 9 August 2006 - Le logis de l'abbé (cad. AC 125) and le logis de Bourdeilles (cad. AC 122): by order of 7 May 2008
Key figures
Abbé Foucault - Founder
Opposing Benedictine reform, hermit founder.
Gérard de Montlau - First Abbé (1128)
Blessed by the Bishop of Périgueux.
Alain de Solminihac - Reformer Abbé (1614-1636)
Rebuilt the abbey, beatified in 1981.
Hélie de Talleyrand-Périgord - Cardinal Protector (XIV)
Staffing for 38 canons in 1360.
Nicolas Baudeau - Monk and economist
Intellectual figure of the post-medieval abbey.
Joseph Prunis - Prior and politician
Active after the French Revolution.
Origin and history
The abbey of Notre-Dame de Chancelade originated around 1096, when Abbé Foucault, opposed to the Benedictine reform imposed by Pope Urban II, left the abbey of Saint-Pierre de Cellefrouin to live as a hermit at Fons Cancellatus. Joined by other monks, he founded a community that in 1133 adopted the rule of St Augustine. In 1128, the bishop of Périgueux, Guillaume d'Auberoche, blessed the first abbot, Gérard de Montlau, marking the beginning of the construction of the monastery. The abbey church and the parish chapel, dedicated to the Virgin and Saint Madeleine, were consecrated on October 12, 1147.
In the 14th century, the abbey, protected by Cardinal Hélie de Talleyrand-Périgord, had 22 religious and had an endowment to accommodate 38 canons. However, the wars marked her history: occupied by the English from 1360 to 1367, then looted and burned in 1575 by the Huguenots during the Wars of Religion, she lost her nave and her novel choir. Only the crossover of the transept, surmounted by a dome, remains. The reconstruction began in the 17th century under the impulse of Alain de Solminihac, a reformer abbot who rebuilt the church, cloister and house between 1622 and 1638.
Solminihac, appointed bishop of Cahors in 1636, returned to Chancelade to consecrated the church in 1638. His work also includes the spiritual and intellectual reform of the abbey, with the enrichment of the library (4,000 books, cartulars) and the discovery of the Journal de voyage de Montaigne in the archives. After the Revolution, the abbey was sold as a national property in 1790, but its church became parish in the 19th century. Ranked a historic monument in 1909, it was restored from 1955 and reopened to the public in 1977.
In 1998, a community of regular canons from Saint-Victor was resettled, reviving its spiritual vocation. The Abbey's house, renovated between 2019 and 2025 (€2.8 million), now houses a spiritual centre. The architectural complex, combining Romanesque (XII century), Gothic (XIVth-XVth) and classical (XVIIth), includes the cruciform church, the house of Bourdeilles (XVth), the commons (moulin, cuvier, cellar) and classified gardens. The chapel of Saint John (1147), vaulted in a broken cradle, completes this heritage.
Among the outstanding figures, Alain de Solminihac (beacon in 1981) embodies the rebirth of the abbey, while monks such as Nicolas Baudeau (economist) and Joseph Prunis (post-Revolutional politician) illustrate his intellectual influence. Christ in contempt (17th century), a painting attributed to the school of Georges de La Tour, bears witness to his artistic heritage. Today, eight canons lead liturgical and pastoral life, serving local parishes and perpetuating a millennium tradition.
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