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Origin and history

The Franciscan convent of Mirebeau, also called the Monastery of the Clares, was founded in 1411 as part of the reform of the order initiated by Sister Colette in 1408 in Besançon. This movement sought to restore the strict observance of the Franciscan rule within the Clarisses, a begging order created in 1212. The site preserves major architectural traces, such as the abbatial house, a mâchicoulis turret, and especially the chapel, whose southern facade has two doors walled from the 15th to 15th centuries, one classified as a Historic Monument in 1932.

The chapel, with a rectangular plan with a bedside with cut strips, illustrates the successive changes to the monument. Its 15th century girdled frame and 18th century jube testify to this evolution, while its covers mix slate and flat tiles. Reorganized in 1616, the convent was partially preserved, with interior elements reworked in the middle of the eighteenth century. Today, the convent gate (1932) and the chapel itself (2003) benefit from protection under the Historical Monuments.

The current remains, owned by the municipality of Mirebeau, recall the spiritual and social importance of this monastery in the region. Founded in a context of religious reform, it reflects the architectural and community dynamics of the Clarisses between the Middle Ages and the modern era, while embodying the monastic heritage of New Aquitaine.

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