Monastery of Saint-Volusien de Foix
Abbaye Saint-Volusien de Foix / Chapitre Saint-Volusien / S. Volusianus de Fuxo
Foix, Ariège)
The monastery of Saint-Volusien is mentioned in a document of Charles the Bald in 870, when it was dependent on the monastery of Saint-Thibéry (Hérault). It was dedicated to Volusian, bishop of Tours, who died in these lands in 495, on his way to exile. Considered a martyr, his relics were venerated in the church of Saint-Nazaire-et-Saint-Celse, where the first Benedictine house would have been established.
The monastery developed under the protection of the county of Foix. Count Roger II ordered the construction of a new church following a promise made shortly before leaving for the First Crusade. This church, already dedicated to Saint Volusian, was consecrated in 1112, and the relics of the titular saint were transferred from Saint-Nazaire to the crypt of the new church. In 1104, the establishment, hitherto Benedictine, adopted the rule of Saint Augustine. Around 1300, the church was rebuilt thanks to the will of Roger Bernard III, Count of Foix between 1265 and 1302. In 1440, under the abbacy of Pierre III, a bull of Pope Eugene IV reduced the number of canons from eighteen to twelve because of the poor economic situation.
Due to the Wars of Religion, the canonical church was destroyed, and the relics of the saint were lost. Reconstruction began in 1609 and throughout that century a series of modernisation works were carried out on the convent complex. The life of the monastery ended with the Revolution. Its assets were sold (1793), and finally, in 1804, it caught fire. The monastic buildings are now occupied by an official body and the church has the status of a parish.
Altar of Saint Volusian
Choir stalls
Entombment of Christ
Capital of the missing cloister
Scene from the life of Saint Volusian.
Musée départemental de l'Ariège
Photo by Tylwyth Eldar, on Wikimedia
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- SAINT-MAUR, Congregació de (1785). Gallia Christiana in provincias ecclesiasticas distributa. Vol. 13. París: Typographia Regia
The church is in the city center of Foix