The foundation of the Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Père-en-Vallée, in Chartres, is poorly documented. The accounts of its earliest history, and their details, are considered doubtful. It begins with an implausible narrative that places the burial site of Saint Soline here; she is said to have been martyred at Chartres in the 1st century. Another tradition attributes the foundation to Clovis I (c. 466–511) and its endowment to his widow, Clotilde (c. 474–c. 545).
Tower (11th century)
It is more likely that it was founded in the mid-7th century, or shortly before. At that time, Queen Balthild (c. 626–680), wife of Clovis II (635–657), made a donation to it. It is also known that Bishop Élie (Helias, c. 840–c. 849) attacked and plundered the monastery in an attempt to bring it under his authority, resulting in the community’s exile to Saint-Germain d’Auxerre Abbey (Yonne). In 857, when Saint-Père-en-Vallée was beginning to be rebuilt, Chartres was attacked by the Normans, who destroyed the city, particularly affecting the religious buildings and causing the death of Bishop Frotbold.
His successor, Gislebert, promoted the reconstruction of the monastery from 860 onwards, and the house was occupied by a community of canons. In 911, or perhaps shortly before, the site was again destroyed by the Vikings and remained abandoned until around 930, when Bishop Aganon restored the monastery once more, and it was repopulated by secular canons. His successor, Rainfroi, reformed the house and, in 954, introduced a Benedictine community from Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire Abbey (Loiret).
Saint-Père-en-Vallée experienced rapid expansion and, in 985, King Lothair (941–986) granted it legal and ecclesiastical exemption. In 1077, the church received the remains of Saint Giduin, the elected Archbishop of Dol, who died at Chartres that year and was venerated there. The church also suffered a fire that same year, followed by another in 1134. In 1106, a bull issued by Pope Paschal II (1099–1118) confirmed the numerous possessions it had accumulated by then. In 1163, work was being carried out to repair the damage caused by the fires.
In 1481, the house was placed under the commendatory system; the first commendatory abbot of this period was Philippe de la Chapelle. An attempt was made to reform the monastery in 1552, without success, until Saint-Père-en-Vallée joined the Congregation of Saint-Maur in 1650, which undertook its material restoration. The abbey was suppressed in 1790 as a result of the Revolution, when its community consisted of eight monks. Afterwards, the church became a parish church under the patronage of Saint-Pierre.
The medieval monastery has preserved its church, a large building dating from the 12th and 13th centuries. It is preceded by an older tower, built around the year 1000, which contains pre-Romanesque decorative elements. It is a three-aisled building without a transept. The east-facing chevet consists of the chancel, surrounded by an ambulatory that continues the side aisles. It has five radiating chapels. The whole complex has undergone modifications resulting from alterations and repairs. The present tower already stood before an earlier building of smaller dimensions and is therefore not aligned with the axis of the present structure. It also preserves an important collection of 13th and 14th centuries stained glass.
Virgin Mary / Canon
Saint Sylvester / Saint Gregory
(14th century)
Stained glass windows with the life of the Virgin Mary (1st half of the 14th century)
Stained glass windows in the apse (c. 1300)
Veue de l'abbaye de St Pere en Valée a Chartres
Louis Boudan (1696)
Bibliothèque nationale de France
Cloister - A l'Abbaye de St Pere en valée à Chartres
Louis Boudan (1696)
Bibliothèque nationale de France
Monasticon Gallicanum
Bibliothèque nationale de France
According to Armorial général de France (18th century)
Bibliothèque nationale de France
- BAUDRILLART, Alfred (1953). Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques. Vol. 12. París: Letouzey et Ané
- BEAUNIER, Dom (1905). Recueil historique des Archêvechés, Évêchés, Abbayes et Prieurés de France. Vol. 1. Province ecclésiastique de Paris. París: Poussielgue
- BIENVENÜE Paule (1958). Les bâtiments conventuels de l'ancienne abbaye Saint-Père de Chartres. Bulletin Monumental, vol. 116/1
- GUÉRARD, Benjamin; ed. (1840). Cartulaire de l'abbaye de Saint-Père de Chartres (2 vols.). Collection des cartulaires de France. París: Crapelet
- GUÉRIN, Paul (1888). Les Petits Bollandistes. Vies des saints. Vol. 12. París: Bloud et Barral
- JOLY, Roger (1993). Histoire d'un monument, l'église Saint-Pierre de Chartres. Bulletin de la Société archéologique d'Eure-et-Loir, núm. 38-39
- JOLY, Roger (1997). La tour de Saint-Père-en-Vallée livre ses secrets. Bulletin de la Société archéologique d'Eure-et-Loir, núm. 53/2
- PEIGNÉ-DELACOURT, Achille (1877). Monasticon Gallicanum. Paris: G. Chamerot
- POISSON , Charles-Benjamin (1857). Chroniques de l'abbaye royale de Saint-Père-en-Vallée. Chartres: Garnier
- PRACHE, Anne (1983). Île-de-France romane. Na nuit des temps, 60. Zodiaque
- SAINT-MAUR, Congregació de (1744). Gallia Christiana in provincias ecclesiasticas distributa. Vol. 8. París: Typographia Regia
Saint-Père-en-Vallée Abbey is situated southeast of the historic centre of Chartres