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Origin and history

The abbey of Marchiennes is a Benedictine abbey founded around 630 by Irish monks, disciples of Saint Colomban, and by Adalbaud, Duke of Douai, on the advice of Saint Amand. Originally a masculine monastery, it became a double monastery in 647 under the impulse of Rictrude, widow of Adalbert I of Ostrevent, then sheltering monks and nuns of Colombian tradition. The influence of Saint Amand and Jonas de Bobbio, co-operator in the region, is mentioned for his organization.

In the 9th century, the abbey suffered two ravages by the Normans, and in the 10th century, the male community was reduced to a few canons. In 1024, it became a monastery of men adopting the rule of Saint Benedict, under the impulse of the Abbey of Saint-Sauveur d'Anchin. His scriptorium then produced many illuminated manuscripts, and the abbey experienced an institutional and artistic renewal in the 12th century under the Abbatiate of Armand de Castello.

In the 16th century, thanks to the patronage of the monk Jacques Coëne, the abbey reached its peak and founded a college at the University of Douai between 1564 and 1570. However, it was ravaged in 1566 by the Gueux, losing much of its art. In 1712, a siege partially destroyed abbey and city, before the Revolution ended its activity in 1791, with the final departure of the Benedictines.

Today, the abbey remains only the 1748 gate, serving as a city hall, and some buildings like a brasserie in restaurants. The remains have been listed as historical monuments since 1974. Two 17th-century gouaches, commissioned by the Duke of Croÿ, offer a visual testimony of his past appearance.

The abbey played a central role in the economic development of Marchiennes, thanks to the clearing, drainage and exploitation of marshes and peatlands. It also had a refuge in Lille, some of which still remain, despite the urban destruction of the 1960s.

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