- Saint-Wandrille-Rançon
Saint-Wandrille-Rançon is a commune of the
Seine-Maritime "département", inFrance . Its population was 1,172 in 1999.History
:"see main article
Fontenelle Abbey "It is celebrated for the ruins of itsBenedictine abbey . The abbey church belongs to the 13th and 14th centuries; portions of the nave walls supported by flyingbuttress es are standing, and the windows and vaulting of the side aisles are in fair preservation. The church communicates with acloister , from which an interesting door of theRenaissance period opens into the refectory. Beside this entrance is a richly ornamentedlavabo of the Renaissance period. The refectory is a room over 100 ft. long, lighted by graceful windows of the same period. The abbey was founded in the7th century by SaintWandregisel , aided by the donations ofClovis II . It soon became renowned for learning and piety. In the 13th century it was burnt down, and the rebuilding was not completed till the beginning of the16th century . Later in the same century it was practically destroyed by theHuguenot s, and again the restoration was not finished for more than a hundred years. The demolition of the church was begun at the time of the Revolution, but proceeded slowly and in 1832 was entirely stopped.The commune was formed in
1825 by the merger of the two communes of Saint-Wandrille and Rançon.External links
* [http://www.saint-wandrille-rancon.fr/ Saint-Wandrille-Rançon] (French)
* [http://www.st-wandrille.com/ Abbey of Saint Wandrille] (French)
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