The best running trails around Étais

The Abbey of Fontenay, like all monasteries and places of worship, was, of course, founded or built first and foremost as a place of prayer. Due to its outstanding significance, it has also been honored with the title of "World Heritage Site" by UNESCO. The German-language television series "Treasures of the World – Heritage of Humanity" documents these special sites around the world in quarter-hour segments. One episode also deals with this abbey, and the website reads: * "France at the end of the 11th century. Christianity has prevailed. The noble abbots of the Benedictine monasteries live in prosperity. The monastic ideal of poverty and modesty seems to have been forgotten. A new order is founded in Burgundy. It calls its followers to return to early Christian ideals: to work and poverty, to humility and seclusion from the world. The monks establish their first monastery, "Citeaux," after which they later call themselves Cistercians. The order grows rapidly. The monks clear the forests and regulate the rivers. Their religious houses soon spread throughout France, even to Germany. The Fontenay Abbey is also founded under them." The film is available in the ARD media library at the following link =>> https://www.ardmediathek.de/video/schaetze-der-welt/fontenay-frankreich-folge-11/swr/Y3JpZDovL3N3ci5kZS83MjQ3MjIw

The Abbey of Fontenay was, like all monasteries and places of worship, of course founded or built first and foremost as a place of prayer. Due to its outstanding importance, it has also been "ennobled" by UNESCO with the title of "World Cultural Heritage". The German-language television series "Treasures of the World - Heritage of Humanity" documents these special sites all over the world in quarter-hour contributions. One episode also deals with this abbey, on the website you can read: * "France at the end of the 11th century. Christianity has prevailed. The noble abbots of the Benedictine monasteries live in prosperity. The monks' ideal of poverty and modesty seems to have been forgotten. A new order is founded in Burgundy. It calls on its followers to return to original Christian ideals: to work and poverty, to humility and seclusion from the world. The monks found their first monastery "Citeaux", after which they later call themselves Cistercians. The religious order grows quickly. The monks clear the forests and regulate the rivers. Their religious houses soon spread across France and into Germany. The Fontenay monastery was founded under them." The film is available in the ARD media library at the following link: => https://www.ardmediathek.de/video/schaetze-der-welt/fontenay-frankreich-folge-11/swr/Y3JpZDovL3N3ci5kZS83MjQ3MjIw

The world heritage monastery is worth a visit. However, there is an entrance fee.

A world heritage abbey from the 12th century. Its territory extends over 1200 ha. The Abbey is decorated with a landscaped park classified in 2004 as a “Remarkable Garden” by the National Council of Parks and Gardens. You can book tickets in advance to visit this place on this site: https://www.abbayedefontenay.com the price starts from 9 euros.

Founded by Saint Bernard in 1118, Fontenay Abbey is one of the oldest Cistercian monasteries in Europe. The Romanesque architecture gives a remarkable homogeneity to the 12th-century buildings that have remained intact after more than eight centuries of history. The visitor discovers successively the church, the cloister, the monks' dormitory, the chapter house, the scriptorium and the great forge. After visiting the monastery, garden lovers can freely stroll through the two-hectare park and admire the new landscaped garden with numerous species of plants and shrubs. Fontenay Abbey is now privately owned and was one of the first French sites to be inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1981. The former monastery is located in a listed and fully preserved valley. The hiking trails invite you to numerous walks through the beech and ash forest. Admission is currently 11 euros, but it's worth it ;-)

Very beautiful and impressive. It's very quiet here. Everything is lovingly cared for. It still breathes something of the history of the monastery. A special place.

The Abbey of Fontenay is one of the "daughters" of Citeaux. The Cistercian movement was founded by Bernard de Clairvaux, in Clairvaux itself in the current department of Aube, in the Champenoise region. The religious movement spread after the creation of the main abbey in Burgundy which took the name of Citeaux. The latter was created in 1068 between Beaune and Seurre then the order spread throughout France and Europe. The Cistercian movement comes from the name of a plant, the Cistella, which grew in the swamps that the monks were trying to clean up. In memory of their struggle in the face of hostile nature, they named their order after this simple plant. This movement starts from the observation that to touch God, we must live by humbly working the earth. The Fontenay building is a perfect example of sobriety, simplicity and silence. All these attributes reflect the very soul of the Cistercians and are found here. For more information and visiting times, here is the abbey's website: http://www.abbayedefontenay.com/

A beautiful abbey to visit and kept in pristine condition. Not much to add as Karsten S has done an excellent job giving some historical context to the place.