Bon-Repos Abbey, Saint-Gelven, France

The Bon-Repos Abbey was founded by Viscount Alain III de Rohan in c. 1184. According to legend, he was asked to build it by the Virgin Mary; she appeared to him in a dream when he fell asleep on this spot after a hard day’s hunting in the Quénécan Forest. After a tumultuous history, which included being burnt down by the Chouans (Royalists) in 1795, the abbey fell into ruin until it was rescued in 1986 by the local community who founded the Association of Friends of Bon Repos Abbey. Thanks to the association, part of the abbey has been restored although the main body is an empty shell. Nowadays the abbey is devoted to nurturing contemporary art by having artists in residence and holding regular exhibitions.

References:

Brittany Tourism

User Reviews

Martyn Smith (7 months ago)
Beautiful walks in stunning setting

D Henrich (9 months ago)
Interesting scenery of an old 13th century gate and a square ruin of the 17th century, which used to be a cistercensian abbaye before. Without corona-pandemic, there is a big summer light-show in front of the monasterie's ruins surrounded by lush woods.

Chris Dunn (9 months ago)
It's a building site at the moment.

Ann On-Holiday (9 months ago)
A small but lively artisan market there on a Sunday. Plus a bar overlooking the lake & another bar further down. The Abbey and woods and lake are very nice indeed. Better in the sunshine!

Paula Turner (3 years ago)
Fab show we really enjoyed it and not expensive

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German crusaders known as the Livonian Brothers of the Sword began construction of the Cēsis castle (Wenden) near the hill fort in 1209. When the castle was enlarged and fortified, it served as the residence for the Order's Master from 1237 till 1561, with periodic interruptions. Its ruins are some of the most majestic castle ruins in the Baltic states. Once the most important castle of the Livonian Order, it was the official residence for the masters of the order.

In 1577, during the Livonian War, the garrison destroyed the castle to prevent it from falling into the control of Ivan the Terrible, who was decisively defeated in the Battle of Wenden (1578).

In 1598 it was incorporated into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Wenden Voivodship was created here. In 1620 Wenden was conquered by Sweden. It was rebuilt afterwards, but was destroyed again in 1703 during the Great Northern War by the Russian army and left in a ruined state. Already from the end of the 16th century, the premises of the Order's castle were adjusted to the requirements of the Cēsis Castle estate. When in 1777 the Cēsis Castle estate was obtained by Count Carl Sievers, he had his new residence house built on the site of the eastern block of the castle, joining its end wall with the fortification tower.

Since 1949, the Cēsis History Museum has been located in this New Castle of the Cēsis Castle estate. The front yard of the New Castle is enclosed by a granary and a stable-coach house, which now houses the Exhibition Hall of the Museum. Beside the granary there is the oldest brewery in Latvia, Cēsu alus darītava, which was built in 1878 during the later Count Sievers' time, but its origins date back to the period of the Livonian Order. Further on, the Cēsis Castle park is situated, which was laid out in 1812. The park has the romantic characteristic of that time, with its winding footpaths, exotic plants, and the waters of the pond reflecting the castle's ruins. Nowadays also one of the towers is open for tourists.

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