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Origin and history

Saint-Nicolas d'Angers Abbey was founded around 1021 by Foulques Nerra, Count of Anjou, after a vow made during a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. The initial church, dedicated to Saint Nicholas, was consecrated in 1020, followed by the construction of the monastery between 1021 and 1022. A second church, built at the end of the 11th century, was blessed by Pope Urban II in 1096. Shale remains, visible on Ambrose-Paré Street, could belong to this medieval building.

In the 13th century, the abbey was partially rebuilt, while a major transformation took place in the 18th century under the impetus of the Maurists, with the reconstruction of the bell tower, the convent shop and the abbey house. Sold as a national good during the Revolution, the site successively became a barracks, a hospital, and then an asylum. Today, it houses the Mother House of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, founded in 1835 by Saint Marie Euphrasie Pelletier, as well as a retirement home.

The abbey also exercised international influence, notably in England, where it founded the priories of Spalding (1074) and Kirby (1077). The latter, after legal conflicts in the 14th century, was finally attached to the Chartreuse of Axholme in 1414. Several elements of the abbey, including the southern facade of the 18th century, the large staircase, and the remains of the cloister, have been protected as historical monuments since 1955 and 1961.

The legal protections also cover the tower of the bells, the old Conventual Store (XII century) with its 15th century staircase, and the Abbatial Logis (registered in 1995). In 2009, some of the sites were restructured to accommodate foreign emissaries coming to study French. The ensemble thus illustrates a rich architectural and religious history, extending from the Middle Ages to the contemporary era.

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