THE HISTORY OF STAVELOT ABBEY

AROUND 648-650
Sigebert III gives a charter to Remacle
AROUND 648-650

ONE OF THE OLDEST MONASTIC FOUNDATIONS IN BELGIUM

Sigebert III, the Merovingian king of Austrasia and eldest son of the famous king Dagobert I, had a charter drawn up authorising the foundation of an abbey in the royal forest of Ardennes. On the advice of his mayor of the Grimoald Palace, Sigebert III decided that this abbey would be composed of two monastic communities, placed under the direction of one single abbot.

AROUND 648-650
Altarpiece of Saint Remacle – Construction of the Abbey
AROUND 648-650

ARRIVAL OF REMACLE, FROM THE ABBEY OF LUXEUIL (VOSGES), IN THE NORTHERN ARDENNES

When they arrived in the royal domain, the monk Remacle and his brothers settled in two places: in Malmedy and, a few kilometres away, in Stavelot. They did not choose the valley of Amblève, in the heart of the Ardennes forest, by chance. In fact, this region, located on the border of two dioceses, is full of natural resources necessary for the monastery’s many needs.

685
First Church
685

FIRST MENTION OF A CHURCH IN THE SOURCES

The abbot Goduin had a stone church built, in which he transferred Remacle’s tomb, who died between 671 and 679. A cult around the founder’s relics gradually developed, attracting an increasing number of pilgrims.

9TH CENTURY
Scriptorium
9TH CENTURY

A PERIOD OF FERVOUR FOLLOWED BY A TROUBLED PERIOD

The discipline is maintained and the area expands considerably. Stavelot is one of the monasteries most favoured by the largesse of the Germanic rulers.

The Stavelotain monks followed the rule of St Benedict, were educated, and produced important literary works, including those centred on the life and miracles of St Remacle.

Stavelot became the abbot’s habitual residence.

The second half of the ninth century was darker with a succession of commendatory abbots at the head of the abbey and the birth of rivalries between the two communities.

881
Flight of the Monks – Norman invasions
881

NORMAN INVASIONS

Warned of the danger, the monks fled with the relics of Saint Remacle before the Normans who pillaged and burned the abbey.

938-954
The Abbey under Odilon
938-954

ODILON, THE “RESTORER OF STAVELOT”

Ce/Odilon is a reforming monk from Gorze Abbey (Metz) (who) re-establishes Benedictine discipline/rule within the sister communities. He had the church enlarged and conventual buildings built around a cloister.

1020-1048
Poppon pilgrimage church
1020-1048

POPPON AND THE GREAT PILGRIMAGE CHURCH

A second reformer is appointed abbot of Stavelot-Malmedy by Emperor Henry II. Joined by the movement initiated by Richard de Saint-Vannes (Verdun), Poppon reorganised the monastery and built a new cloister and one of the largest churches of the Empire. The prestigious building is monumental, to allow the good coexistence of monks and pilgrims.

12TH CENTURY
Altarpiece of Saint Remacle
12TH CENTURY

THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE ABBEY

Under the abbacies of Wibald and his brother and successor, Erlebald, Stavelot Abbey is a prosperous institution, prominent among Germanic rulers. The latter entrusted them with important responsibilities, particularly diplomatic ones. Scholars anxious to maintain the faith and devotion of monks and pilgrims, these two abbots commissioned magnificent pieces of goldsmithing to adorn the church.

1220-1245
La châsse de saint Remacle
1220-1245

CREATION OF THE SUMPTUOUS SHRINE OF SAINT REMACLE

1499-1546
The large renovated church
1499-1546

THE RENOVATION CAMPAIGN OF GUILLAUME DE MANDERSCHEIDT

At the beginning of the 16th century, the abbey emerged from a long period of trouble with the abbot Guillaume de Manderscheidt, who instituted important reforms and had considerable renovation work carried out. In this context, he rebuilds the monastery of Malmedy, raises a castle on the heights of Stavelot and endows the abbey church with a new entrance tower.

1574
The tower of the Abbey, following the renovation of Guillaume de Manderscheidt
1574

THE GOTHIC CHURCH

A violent fire in the church meant that a large part had to be demolished. It was rebuilt on the same foundations, but in late Gothic style. The total height of its tower reaches 85 metres.

18TH CENTURY
The tower’s Gothic spire, replaced by a dome
18TH CENTURY

THE MAJOR MODERNISATION SITE OF THE CONVENTUAL BUILDINGS

In the course of the 18th century, all the conventual buildings are rebuilt in a classical style. The abbey thus presents the face that we still know today. As a result of damage caused by lightning, the tower’s Gothic spire was replaced by a dome (of neo-classical inspiration).

1794
In the revolutionary context, the church dismantled stone by stone
1794

THE END OF THE ABBEY

A few years after the French Revolution, revolutionary troops arrived in the principality of Stavelot-Malmedy, forcing the monks to flee to Germany with their most precious possessions. From then on, the buildings and the church were ruined from top to bottom. Practically abandoned, they were sold in 1798 to two Stavelotain citizens, who considered the church as a useful quarry. It was dismantled and its stones sold. Only the lower part of its entrance tower was preserved.

1951
The monastery of Wavreumont
1951

THE MONKS’ RETURN TO STAVELOT IN THE 20TH CENTURY

The Abbey of Mont-César in Leuven decides to restore the monastic life dormant since the Revolution by founding, on a hill symbolically located between the two cities of the former abbey church principality, in the hamlet of Wavreumont, a priory dedicated to Saint Remacle.

1977-2015
The archaeological site
1977-2015

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATIONS

The discovery of the remains of the great Ottonian pilgrimage abbey church, the discovery of the traces of the first religious buildings and the ancient Romanesque cloister as well as the quality of the objects collected have largely demonstrated the great archaeological interest of the Stavelotain site.

TODAY
The Abbey today
TODAY

RE-APPROPRIATION OF THE FORMER ABBEY

Restored by the Public Service of Wallonia and classified as an exceptional heritage, the former abbey of Stavelot has been home to several museums since 2002 and serves as a setting for many cultural events.