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Origin and history

The Abbey of Saint-Amant-de-Boixe finds its origins in the tomb of Amantius, a hermit born around 520 in Bordeaux. Disciple of Saint Cybard, he settled in the forest of Boixe to chase the evil spirits there and died there in 600. His tomb attracts faithful, and a monastery develops there, mentioned for the first time in 888. In the 10th century, the Count of Angoulême Arnaud Manzer restored the abbey to the bishop of Angoulême, and a monk named Franc introduced the Benedictine rule. In 1025, the abbey was moved near Montignac, and its construction began with a church, cloister and convent buildings.

In the 12th century, the abbey prospered under the impulse of Alienor d'Aquitaine, who completed the church in 1170. It is consecrated in the presence of several bishops and abbots. The abbey then has 16 priories, 24 churches, and 50 monks. She derives her income from mills, ovens, fisheries, and rights to the Boixe forest. However, a 13th century fire destroyed part of the buildings, requiring the reconstruction of the choir and cloister in Gothic style. The Hundred Years' War aggravated the damage, reducing the monastic community to about ten monks in the 15th century.

The abbey gradually declines from the wars of Religion and under the influence of the abbots. In 1774 it was abolished by episcopal decree, and its property returned to the seminary of Angoulême. After the Revolution, the buildings were sold as national goods, and the church became parish. Ranked a historic monument in 1840, it was restored in the 19th century by Paul Abadie. Today, the Abbey is a cultural site open to the public, offering exhibitions on Romanesque architecture and welcoming pilgrims of Santiago de Compostela.

The abbey church, built of local stone, combines Romanesque and Gothic elements. His plan includes a nave of six spans, a transept topped by a bell tower, and a disaxed choir of the 15th century. The restored bell tower has a slate arrow. The partially preserved convent buildings include a refectory, kitchens, and a cloister searched between 2002 and 2005, revealing burials and archaeological remains. The east wing, destroyed in the 19th century, gave way to a modest dwelling.

The abbey was a welcoming place for pilgrims and the poor, with a chaplaincy held by women in the thirteenth century. Every year the monks distributed bread to the needy. The site, now shared property between the municipality and private individuals, attracts 12,000 visitors annually. A space dedicated to Romanesque architecture, inaugurated in 2008, presents models, archaeological objects, and interactive exhibitions on the history of the monastery and medieval construction techniques.

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