Priory of Plessis-Grimoult
The priory of Plessis-Grimoult is a twelfth-century French priory built by the "Order of the Regular Canons of St. Augustine" located in Le Plessis-Grimoult in the department of Calvados. It was listed as a national heritage site in 1928, and the nearby archaeological site and the remains of the fortified garden were listed in 1996.[1]
| Priory of Plessis-Grimoult | |
|---|---|
Prieuré du Plessis-Grimoult | |
 Guillaume Causson's 13th-century doorway | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Catholic Church |
| Region | Normandy |
| Deity | Christian God |
| Patron | Saint Stephen |
| Year consecrated | 1131 |
| Location | |
| Municipality | Plessis-Grimoult |
| Country | France |
| Geographic coordinates | 48°57′43″N 0°36′30″W |
| Architecture | |
| Founder | Richard Samson |
History
Establishment
In 1047 the local baron, Grimoult of Plessis was executed for an attempted coup against the Duke of Normandy and his lands were given to the duke's half brother, the Bishop of Bayeaux, to become part of his diocese.[2] In 1131 the local church was dedicated to Saint Stephen.
Around 1135, William the Conquerer's former chaplain, Richard Samson, was the local priest. He brought a community of Canons regular to Plessis-Grimoult and in so doing became the first Prior there. The canons lived in Samson's own presbytery at that time. In 1153 under Samson's successor, the cannons moved to Champ Osburt. Under Prior Henri I the canons moved to the Chateau de Viré. The church building and priory in its current location were built in the late 13 century under the direction of Prior Guillaume Causson, Henri I's successor. Only the priory's entryway remains standing today.[3]
Priors
The Priory had 35 Priors from its founding to the nationalization of church property during the French Revolution.
| No. | Name | Years in office | Notes[3] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Richard Samson | ~1135-1153 | Founder. |
| 2 | Nicholas Coquin (Nicholas I) | 1153-1190 | Moved priory to Champ Osburt |
| 3 | Étienne I | 1193-Unknown | |
| 4 | Radulphe | Unknown-1210 | Distant relative of Baron Grimoult |
| 5 | Guillame I | 1210-1234 | |
| 6 | Pierre de la Barre (Pierre I) | 1234-1250 | |
| 7 | Henri | 1250-Unknown | Moved Priory to the Chateau de Vire |
| 8 | Guillaume Causson (Guillaume II) | Unknown-1290 | Built the Church and the Priory's entryway (which still stands today) |
| 9 | Richard the Monk | 1290-1314 | |
| 10 | Guillaume Pinçon (Guillaume III) | 1314-1340 | |
| 11 | Guillaume de Canteil (Guillaume IV) | 1340-1369 | Reduced the number of canons from fifty-six to forty-five |
| 12 | Jean Maufras (Jean I) | 1370-1398 | |
| 13 | Pierre de Missy (Pierre II) | 1398-1400 | |
| 14 | Matthieu de Chaumoncel | 1400-1412 | |
| 15 | Guillaume de l'Orme (Guillaume V) | 1412-1433 | |
| 16 | Jean Marivint (Jean II) | 1433-1457 | Buried in the Church |
| 17 | Pierre de Missy (Pierre III) | 1470-1477 | |
| 18 | Bertin Marvint | 1477-1480 | Nephew of Jean Marvint |
| 19 | Gabriel le Veneur | 1480-1523 | |
| 20 | Nicholas de Saint-Germain (Nicholas II) | 1523-1543 | Uncle of the next Prior |
| 21 | Guillaume de Saint-Germain (Guillaume VI) | 1543-1582 | During his Priorship Calvinists burned down most of the Priory |
| 22 | Robert Maunoury | 1582 | |
| 23 | Francois de Lusignan | 1582-1592 | |
| 24 | Louis Cochu | 1592-1604 | |
| 25 | Handsome Jean, or le Ber de Nantes | 1605-Unknown | |
| 26 | François de Montmorency (Francois II) | 1612-1618 | Beheaded in 1627 because he broke the law against dueling |
| 27 | Louis de Montmorency (Louis II) | 1618 | Brother of the previous |
| 28 | Étienne le Berger (Étienne II) | 1618-1625 | |
| 29 | Georges du Fay | 1625-1651 | |
| 30 | Jaques de Matignon | 1652-1670 | |
| 31 | Jaques-Bénigne Boussuer | 1671-1704 | |
| 32 | Marie-Joseph d'Hostung | 1704-1706 | |
| 33 | Léonor Goyon de Matignon | 1706-1757 | Cousin of Jacques I, Prince of Monaco |
| 34 | M. Lemercier | 1757-1787 | |
| 35 | Louis-François de Berton du Prat | 1787-1789 | Last Proir of Plessis-Grimoult |
Architecture
In 1830 the building consisted of a transept terminating in an apse. There were several columns with capitals which dated back to the 13th century. The choir was older than the tower. The roof was non-existent by 1830, having most likely been made of wood. The western wall of the cloister was still standing. Two doors open on the gallery of the cloister, the capitals of the columns are from the end of the 14th or 15th century. In the other rooms on the ground floor, the eight-sided columns have capitals that are perhaps from the 14th century. There is a beautiful fireplace in a room that is believed to be the kitchen. Gardens and ponds are farther to the east. To the west of the outer courtyard of the priory, there is a doorway that dates to about the thirteenth or fourteenth century.[4]
References
- Ancienne abbaye » [archive], notice no PA00111601, base Mérimée, ministère français de la Culture .
- Élisabeth Zadora-Rio : Enceinte fortifiée du Plessis-Grimoult.
- Alix, Frederic (1911). Les abbés du prieuré Saint-Etienne du Plessis-Grimoult, ordre de Saint-Augustin au diocèse de Bayeux [The Abbots of St. Stephen's Priory in Le Plessis-Grimoult, Ordre of St. Augustin in the diocese of Bayeux] (in French). Revue d'histoire de l'Église de France. pp. 728–733.
- Arcisse de Caumont, Statistique monumentale du Calvados, vol.3 : Arrondissements de Vire et de Bayeux, Caen, Hardel, 1857 (lire en ligne [archive])], p. 223.