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Origin and history

Notre-Dame d'Abondance Abbey, located in the valley of Abondance in Haute-Savoie, is founded around 1100 by regular canons from Saint-Maurice Abbey of Agaune. These religious, following the rule of St Augustine, sought to lead a regular and eremitical life in a context of clergy reform. The abbey developed rapidly, founding four abbey-daughters in the region and forming a regional congregation that would disappear in the seventeenth century when it was reformed by François de Sales.

In the 12th century, the abbey grew considerably, acquiring land and rights of justice in the valley of Abondance and beyond, particularly in the country of Gavot and Chablais. Canons gain seigneurial rights and build infrastructure such as prison towers and court halls. The abbey became an influential religious and political centre, with a community of canons, conversing brothers and converse sisters led by an abbot.

The abbey suffered several major fires and reconstructions, especially in the 15th and 17th centuries. In 1443, a fire destroyed much of the church, leaving intact only the transept and the bedside. The nave was partially rebuilt in the 1470s, and the cloister, decorated with wall paintings in the 15th century, became an emblematic element of the site. These paintings, attributed to a Piedmontese workshop near Giacomo Jaquerio, represent the life of the Virgin in a medieval Savoyard setting.

In the 17th century, the abbey was reformed by François de Sales, who replaced regular canons with reformed cistercians, the leafy. This reform marks the end of the congregation of Abundance and involves architectural changes to adapt the premises to the new community. However, the conflicts between monks and parishioners persisted, particularly with regard to the use of the church.

The abbey was permanently abolished in 1761, and its property was transferred to the Holy House of Thonon. The buildings were sold to private individuals after the French Revolution and gradually purchased by the commune of Abondance. In the 19th century, the abbey was classified as a historic monument, and restorations were undertaken to preserve its heritage, including the wall paintings of the cloister.

Today, the abbey houses municipal services, a museum, a tourist office and a cultural site open to the public. The wall paintings of the cloister, restored on several occasions, remain an exceptional testimony of medieval Savoyard art and Marian worship in the Middle Ages.

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