Abbey of Saint-Robert de La Chaise-Dieu
SS Vitalis & Agricolae / Casam Dei / Casa Dei
(La Chaise-Dieu, Haute-Loire)
The origins of La Chaise-Dieu Abbey are closely linked to Robert de Turlande (c. 1000-1067), who in 1043 withdrew with a few followers to the site where he would soon found this great monastery. By 1046 the abbey was already active, and in 1052 King Henry I of France granted official approval of its foundation, giving it the church of Saint-Vital and Saint-Agricole, its initial dedication. That same year a papal bull placed the monastery under the protection of the Holy See.
The first church of the abbey was probably consecrated in 1050, and by 1067, when Robert de Turlande was buried there, the construction was well advanced. The building was completed in 1095, when Pope Urban II reconsecrated it after the Council of Clermont. From its beginnings, La Chaise-Dieu received numerous donations and soon established priories and churches under its authority, which eventually formed the Casa-Dei congregation.
Within a few years, La Chaise-Dieu became a major religious centre and a place of formation for many leading figures, including Hugh of Grenoble (1053-1132). Another notable monk was Pierre Roger, who in 1342 was elected pope as Clement VI and established his papal seat in Avignon. He financed the rebuilding of the abbey, and at his death (1352) he was buried in the monastic church. Construction works continued under Gregory XI (1371-1378).
Engraving (17th century)
Bibliothèque du Patrimoine (Clermont-Ferrand)
Robert de Turlande
Robert de Turlande was born around the year 1000 into a noble family and was educated at the Collegiate Church of Saint-Julien de Brioude (Haute-Loire), where he entered in 1026. After a stay in Rome, he returned to Auvergne and chose to retire in the mountains, at the site where he would later found La Chaise-Dieu Abbey with two companions. His reputation for holiness quickly spread, and, encouraged by reports of miracles, his followers multiplied, leading to the foundation of the monastery. Robert died at La Chaise-Dieu in 1067 and was canonised in 1070.
Robert de Turlande
The former Romanesque monastery was almost entirely rebuilt. Building activity continued under Abbot Jacques de Saint-Nectaire (1491-1518), the last regular abbot elected by the community. In 1516 the abbey passed into the commendatory regime, with Adrien Gouffier de Boisy (1518-1519) as the first abbot of this period. This era marked the beginning of the abbey’s decline, which worsened during the Wars of Religion: in 1562 it was plundered by the Huguenots, and in 1574 it suffered a partial fire.
In 1640 La Chaise-Dieu was reformed and incorporated into the Congregation of Saint-Maur, which governed it thereafter. In 1645 another fire forced the rebuilding of part of the premises. Monastic life came to an end with the Revolution: in 1790 the abbey was suppressed, the community dispersed and the buildings pillaged.
Despite these vicissitudes, La Chaise-Dieu still preserves a significant part of its monastic buildings. The church, of impressive dimensions, is a 14th-century construction with three aisles, no transept, a semicircular apse with five radiating chapels, and a tower dating from the time of Gregory XI. The cloister and some Maurist-period rooms are also partly preserved. Among its artistic treasures are the series of tapestries, the mural paintings of the Danse Macabre, the choir stalls, and the recumbent effigy of Pope Clement VI.
A splendid set of tapestries survives, today comprising eleven panels of varying width but equal height. They depict episodes from the life of Christ, framed by side scenes in a triptych-like arrangement. Each main scene is accompanied by representations from the Old Testament that prefigure it, with explanatory inscriptions and medallions of prophets.
The work was commissioned under Abbot Jacques de Saint-Nectaire and was hung in 1518. Originally it consisted of seven additional panels, now lost. The tapestries nevertheless survived both the sack of 1562 and the Revolution. They are complemented by three further panels: the Crucifixion (related to the series but of different dimensions), the Nativity, and the Resurrection. Until 2013 they hung in the church choir, but after restoration they are now displayed in an 18th-century hall of the abbey in better conditions.
In 2009, before the transfer of the tapestries
A) Adam and Eve in Paradise - Annunciation - Gideon’s Fleece
B) Moses and the burning bush - Nativity - Aaron’s bod
C) Three soldiers before King David - Adoration of the Magi - Solomon and the Queen of Sheba
A) Michal helps David Escape from Saul - Flight into Egypt - The Idol of Dagon Broken before the Ark
B) Massacre of the priests of Nob - Massacre of the Innocents - Athaliah destroys the line of Judah
C) Crossing of the Red Sea - Baptism of Jesus - Bathing and healing of Naaman
A) The original sin - Temptations of Christ - Esau sells his birthright for a dish of lentils
B) Elijah raises the sidow’s son at Zarephath - Raising of Lazarus - Elisha raises a child
C) David brings Goliath’s head to Jerusalem - Entry into Jerusalem - Elisha welcomed by the prophets at Jericho
A) Joseph sold by his brothers - Betrayal by Judas - Delilah betrays Samson
B) Melchizedek offers bread and wine to Abraham - Last Supper - The fall of the manna
C) Joab kills Abner - The kiss of Judas - Fall of the rebel Angels
A) Achior bound to a tree - Flagellation - Job struck with sores
B) Drunkenness of Noah - Crowning with thorns - Humiliation of David’s envoys
A) Daniel imprisoned by the Babylonians - Jesus before Pilate - Susanna and the Elders
B) Abraham leads Isaac to the sacrifice - Way of the Cross - Elijah fed by a woman at Zarephath
A) Lot Fleeing from Sodom - Descent into Limbo - Nebuchadnezzar condemns three young Jews to the fire
A) Joseph cast into the cistern by his brothers - Burial of Christ - Jonah cast into the sea
B) Samson with the gates of Gaza - Resurrection of Christ - Jonah swallowed by a fish
A) Reuben tears his garment - The holy women at the tomb - Noli me tangere - The king saves Daniel from the lions
A) Joseph recognized by his brothers - Doubting Thomas - Balaam and the donkey
B) Enoch taken up into Paradise - Ascension of Christ - Elijah and the chariot of fire
C) Moses on Mount Sinai - Pentecost - Sacrifice of Elijah
A) Bathsheba and Solomon on the throne - Coronation of the Virgin
B) Esther before Ahasuerus - Judgment of Solomon C) Last Judgment
Crucifixion
Nativity
Rising of Christ
This is a wall painting in fresco, located in one of the side aisles of the abbey church. The unfinished work is dated between 1460 and 1470. Against a reddish background, various figures are depicted accompanied by skeletal characters symbolising death.
The Danse Macabre
The Danse Macabre
The Danse Macabre
The Danse Macabre
The Casa-Dei Congregation
The monastery of La Chaise-Dieu experienced remarkable growth, with numerous priories and abbeys under its authority, becoming the centre of a Benedictine congregation. Among the abbeys affiliated were Saint-Michel de Gaillac (Tarn), Saint-Nicaise de Reims (Marne), Frassinoro (Emilia-Romagna), Borzone (Liguria), and San Juan de Burgos, founded by Saint Adelelmus, († 1097) regarded as the third abbot of La Chaise-Dieu. The congregation also included the nearby women’s house of Saint-André de Lavaudieu (Haute-Loire). In total, it oversaw more than two hundred priories, most of them in France, such as the former abbey of Chanteuges (Haute-Loire) and Saint-Nectaire (Puy-de-Dôme).
Monasticon Gallicanum
Bibliothèque nationale de France
Tomb of Pope Clement VI
Tomb of Pope Clement VI
(Biblioteca Valenciana)
(Biblioteca Valenciana)
Choir
Choir-stalls
Choir-stalls
Tomb of the Musician Angels
Tomb of the Musician Angels
Capital of the primitive church (11th century)
Armorial général de France (18th century)
Bibliothèque nationale de France
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La Chaise-Dieu is located east of Brioude and north of Le Puy-en-Velay