The
Abbey of Fontenay is a former
Cistercian abbey located in the
commune of
Marmagne, near
Montbard, in the
département of
Côte-d'Or in
France.
It was founded by
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux in 1118, only a few years after he left
Cîteaux Abbey to found
Clairvaux Abbey. Located in a small forested valley 60 kilometres northwest of
Dijon, it achieved great prosperity in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Fontenay enjoyed the protection of the
Kings of France but was plundered in the
Hundred Year's War and the
Wars of Religion. Later, its fortunes declined, and the
refectory was demolished by the monks in 1745. The abbey was closed in the
French Revolution, and became a
paper mill until 1902, owned for most of its period of operation by the
Montgolfier family.

Plan of the church.
The abbey was bought by
Édouard Aynard in 1905 and restored. Apart from the demolished refectory, it retains almost all of its original buildings: church,
dormitory,
cloister,
chapter house,
caldarium or "heating room",
dovecote and
forge, all built in
Romanesque style, with later abbot's lodgings and
infirmary. Today the abbey buildings are set in modern manicured
parterres of lawn and gravel. It is one of the oldest and most complete Cistercian abbeys in Europe, and became a
UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981.

Cloister
The church of the abbey was built from 1139 to 1147, and was dedicated by
Pope Eugene III in 1147. It has a
cruciform plan, with a
nave 66 metres long and 8 metres wide, with two
aisles, and a
transept measuring 19 metres. The cloister measures 36×38 metres. The chapterhouse is vaulted, with heavy ribs. The large dormitory is roofed with fifteenth-century
chestnut timbers.

Church and dovecote

Southern side of dormitory and common room

Cloister

Forge