Abbey of Notre-Dame des Châteliers
Abbey of Notre-Dame de Ré / Île de Ré / Insula Rea / Castellariis
(La Flotte, Charente-Maritime)
This Cistercian house was founded from 1156 onwards at the initiative of Eble de Mauléon, lord of Châtelaillon and the Île de Ré, who provided the land to carry out the project. In 1178, Eble formalised the donation and foundation before the abbots of Notre-Dame de l’Étoile (Vienne) and the abbey of Trizay (Vendée), representing the abbey of Pontigny (Yonne), to which it became affiliated.
In the following years, the Mauléon family continued to support the abbey, which gathered a significant patrimony. In 1294, following an English attack that affected the Île de Ré, the monastery was left in ruins. During the Hundred Years’ War, further military episodes took place, especially around the mid-15th century. In the second half of that century, the church was rebuilt in Gothic style; its imposing ruins are still visible. The Wars of Religion put an end to the abbey’s existence: in 1574 it was set on fire, and the monks abandoned it permanently.
In 1623, the abbey’s possessions passed to the clergy of the Congregation of Oratories of Saint Philip Neri, who retained ownership until the French Revolution. In 1625, most of the monastic buildings were demolished. Although the ruins served as a stone quarry for other constructions, much of the church remains visible today, partly because its façade was long used as a maritime landmark.
Affiliation of Châteliers (Ré)
According to Originum Cisterciensium (L. Janauschek, 1877)
Jacques de Billy († 1581),
abbot of Saint Michel en l'Herm and Notre-Dame des Châteliers
Österreichische Nationalbibliothek
Old postcard, private collection
- ATGIER (1902-05). Abbaye de Ré. Revue du Bas-Poitou, vol. 15-18. Fontenay-le-Comte
- BEAUNIER, Dom (1910). Abbayes et prieurés de l'ancienne France. Vol. 3: Auch, Bordeaux. Abbaye de Ligugé
- JANAUSCHEK, Leopoldus (1877). Originum Cisterciensium. Vol. 1. Viena
- KEMMERER, Eugène (1868). Histoire de l'île de Ré depuis les premiers temps historiques jusqu'à nos jours, vol. 2. La Rochelle: Mareschal
- SAINT-MAUR, Congregació de (1720). Gallia Christiana in provincias ecclesiasticas distributa. Vol. 2. París: Typographia Regia
- STUTZ, Françoise (1993). La Flotte-en-Ré (Charente-Maritime). Abbaye des Châteliers. Archéologie médiévale, vol. 23
The Abbey of Notre-Dame des Châteliers is located on the Île de Ré, opposite La Rochelle