| Montivilliers | |
 | |
| The cloister of the abbey | |
| Information | |
| Country |  France |
|---|---|
| Region | Normandy |
| Watercourse | The lizard |
| Altitude | Between 2 and94 m |
| Area | 19,09 km² |
| Population | 16 243 hab. (2012) |
| Density | 850,86 inhab./km² |
| Nice | Montivillons |
| Postal code | 76290 |
| Spindle | UTC 01:00, UTC 02:00 |
| Location | |
 49 ° 32 ′ 49 ″ N 0 ° 11 ′ 20 ″ E | |
| Official site | |
Montivilliers is a small town of Normandy.
Introduction
Montivilliers is a town of approximately 20,000 inhabitants, the largest in size in the outskirts of Le Havre.Montivilliers owes its name to the composition of Monasterium and of Villare (monastery and hamlet in Latin). At the end of the 7th century, in the Lézarde valley, near a hamlet, Saint Philibert founded a women's abbey. This monastery benefited from a privileged status granted by the Norman Duke Robert le Magnifique (or Robert le Diable), then maintained by the kings of France. The abbesses, taking advantage of this power, favored the installation of homes nearby and the development of trade and crafts. This is how we can say that the abbey is inseparable from the history of Montivilliers. and that it has fostered its development for 700 years.
To go
At the "Saint Romain" exit of the motorway A29, the direction of Montivilliers is clearly indicated.
Circulate
To see
- 1 The Abbey of Montivilliers – In the heart of the city, this abbey, completely restored in 2000, classified as a historical monument, offers an original show-trail. Guided by the most modern audiovisual techniques, you will stroll through the cloister, the chapter house, the dormitories, the prestigious refectory and discover the life of the nuns punctuated by prayer, reading and work. At the end of the visit, in the dormitory of XVIe century, models and audiovisual projection invite you to continue the journey in the footsteps of Norman abbeys.
- 2 Saint Sauveur Church – Romanesque-style abbey church founded in the 11th century. The Gothic part, which is to the north, dates from the 15th century.
- 3 The Charnier (or Aître) of Brisgaret – 15th century cemetery, gallery of the unfinished cloister, mass grave, chapel. You enter the cemetery through a porch adorned with Renaissance moldings. We then discover the long gallery of about 36 meters which ends in the chapel. 17 wooden pillars, illustrated with macabre dances, rise on a small stone support and support the sand pit. The mass grave is spared under the gallery thanks to a floor established on the sand pits: the current roof has not kept this floor.
- 4 The walls – built in the second half of the 14th century and abandoned in the 17th century.
- Old houses : the "Promenade de l'Abbaye" allows you to discover how the city has developed around and with the abbey over the centuries. This pleasant course of sixteen stations is a way to appreciate the heart of Montivilliers in a different way.
