Abbaye aux Dames, Saintes explained

The Abbaye aux Dames ("Ladies' Abbey") was the first Benedictine nunnery in Saintes in Charente-Maritime in France. The abbey was founded in 1047 by Geoffrey II, Count of Anjou, and his wife Agnes.^[1] Agnes later retired to the nunnery and died there.^[2]

One of its abbesses was Agnès of Barbezieux (1134–1174), whose relative, Eleanor of Aquitaine, was a generous donor to the abbey.

Madame de Montespan was educated here.

It is located next to the town's Arch of Germanicus and was classified a monument historique in 1948.^[3]

The abbey church, Sainte-Marie-des-Dames, dates from the 12th century.

See also

• History of medieval Arabic and Western European domes

External links

• Abbaye aux Dames - official website

45.7447°N -0.6242°W

Notes and References

1. Penelope D. Johnson, Equal in Monastic Profession: Religious Women in Medieval France, (University of Chicago Press, 1991), 195-196.
2. The Chapter Book of the Nuns of Saintes, Hugh Feiss, The Yale University Library Gazette, Vol. 67, No. 1/2 (October 1992), 13.
3. Ancienne abbaye des Dames