The foundation of the Benedictine abbey of Saint-Pierre de Brantôme is traditionally attributed to Charlemagne, who is said to have donated the relic of Saint Sicarius (one of the Holy Innocents), to whom the church was also dedicated. However, it was not until the year 817 that the monastery’s existence was documented. It is believed that the first monks settled in the natural rock shelters, in a protected location near the river.
Church apse
This first monastic establishment is thought to have disappeared in the mid-9th century due to the Norman invasions. It was restored by Count Bernard of Périgord († c. 950), who endowed it with property inherited from his father, while still retaining certain rights over the monastery. From this early period, the abbot Grimoard († c. 1018) is known; he was also the bishop of Angoulême. During the second half of the 11th century, monastic discipline had declined, and in 1080, the Count of Périgord granted the monastery to La Chaise-Dieu Abbey (Haute-Loire), which, among other responsibilities, took charge of appointing the abbots of Brantôme.
In 1183, the monastery was attacked, and the monks were forced to take refuge in Bourdeilles. Later, it would also suffer the effects of the Hundred Years’ War. In this context, in 1382, the monastery was devastated, and at the beginning of the 15th century, it was fortified by the English. During the second half of that century, both the church, which had been destroyed, and the cloister were rebuilt.
Baptism of Christ (14th century)
Due to internal instability within the community, in 1555, the monastery joined the Congregation of Chezal-Benoît. From that point onwards, it was governed by commendatory abbots, among whom the writer and soldier Pierre de Bourdeille († 1614), known as Brantôme, stood out. He managed to preserve the abbey during the Wars of Religion. In 1636, both the Congregation of Chezal-Benoît and the monastery itself came under the control of the Congregation of Saint-Maur, which undertook its restoration. The Maurists occupied it until its suppression following the Revolution.
The monastery is located between the Dronne River and a rocky cliff that encloses it on the western side. The oldest preserved architectural feature is the Romanesque bell tower, which rises above the rock and remains independent from the church; this structure is dated to the 11th century. The church, also of Romanesque origin, has undergone numerous modifications over time. Part of the cloister is still preserved, as well as the large monastic building, which was constructed between the 15th and 18th centuries. In the cliffside rock, several excavated chambers can be found, some of which are decorated with reliefs carved into the stone, probably from the 16th century.
Cloister
Chapter house
Bell tower (11th century)
Bell tower (11th century)
Bell tower
Illustration from the Dictionnaire raisonné de l'architecture francaise
Troglodytic spaces
Troglodytic spaces
Reliefs in the excavated area
Troglodytic spaces
Troglodytic spaces
Portrait of Pierre de Bourdeille, Brantôme (17th century)
Bibliothèque nationale de France
Monasticon Gallicanum
Bibliothèque nationale de France
The church in ruins. Léo Drouyn (1846)
Bibliothèque municipale de Bordeaux
Eugène Arvengas
Bibliothèque municipale de Bordeaux
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- BAUDRILLART, Alfred (1938). Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques. Vol. 10. París: Letouzey et Ané
- BESSE, J.-M. (1910). Abbayes et prieurés de l'ancienne France. Vol. 3: Provinces ecclésiastiques d'Auch et de Bordeaux. Abbaye de Ligugé
- DESHOULIÈRES, François (1928). Brantôme. Congrès archéologique de France. 90e session. Périgueux. Société française d'archéologie
- PEIGNÉ-DELACOURT, Achille (1877). Monasticon Gallicanum. Paris: G. Chamerot
- SAINT-MAUR, Congregació de (1720). Gallia Christiana in provincias ecclesiasticas distributa. Vol. 2. París: Typographia Regia
- SECRET, Jean (1968). Périgord roman. La nuit des temps, núm. 27. Zodiaque
- VIOLLET-LE-DUC, Eugène (1875). Dictionnaire raisonné de l’architecture française du XIe au XVIe siècle. Vol. 3. París: A. Morel
The monastery of Brantôme is located in the town of the same name, north of Périgueux, on the road to Angoulêmema