"Fontenay in a day" Fontenay-près-Chablis by DSwede

Fontenay is another small quaint town in the French country side. The L'Abbaye Cistercienne de Fontenay is a quiet retreat in the country. It is the site of the "Forge of Fontenay", which being built in 1220, is considered to be the first metallurgical factory in Europe. The abbey is lush and green, with ivy growing on many of the buildings, but inside the church, the Spartan interior shows the practices of the church order.

The Abbey itself was founded in 1118 by St Bernard and is a great preserved example of a Cistercian monastery. It is a Unesco World Heritage site.

We visited Fontenay by embarking from Montbard, while on our way to Vézelay

For more general thoughts, feel free to visit my France page.

(for more pictures, feel free to visit my France Gallery. If you enjoy the pictures, please leave a comment.)