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Origin and history

Sainte-Anne de Bonlieu-sur-Roubion Abbey was founded in 1171 by Countess Véronique de Marsanne, associated with the house of Poitiers-Valentinois. It is a Cistercian female abbey under the authority of Notre-Dame d'Aiguebelle Abbey. The monastery, built in the Provencal Romanesque style, was ruined by the roadmen at the end of the 14th century, then transformed into a priory of men in 1400 under the dependence of the Abbey of Valcroissant. The foundation charter of 1171 mentions for the first time in France the marsanne grape variety, cultivated in its vineyards.

At the Revolution, the abbey was sold as a national property. In 1871, a community of norbertine nuns, led by Marie Odiot de la Paillonne (mother Marie de la Croix), bought and restored the site to restore the feminine branch of the premonstrés. The sisters, exiled to Belgium after the anti-clerical laws of 1905, later left room for pre-demonstrated brothers, who finally left in 2014. The church, rebuilt in the late 19th century, was erected as a minor basilica in 1899.

The abbey retains medieval elements (chevet, transept, capitular hall) integrated into the reconstruction of the Second Empire. Among its treasures, a trinitarian 14th century polychrome wooden statue depicting Jesus, Mary and Saint Anne bears witness to its artistic heritage. Ranked a historic monument in 1999, the abbey and 17th century buildings, as well as the cloister area, are now owned by a cult association.

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