Photos of the Beautiful Medieval Mont St Michel Island

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Photos of the Beautiful Medieval Romanesque Mont St Michel Island & Monastery, Normandy, France. Photos by photographer Paul E Williams.    (TIP – use the icons below the slideshow for thumbnail photos and info)

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Photos of the Beautiful Medieval Gothic Mont St Michel Island

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Photos of Medieval Mont Saint Michel Island, Normandy France.

Location of Mont Saint Michel Island

Perched on a rocky islet at low tide Mont Saint Michel Island is surrounded by vast sandbanks. When the tide cages a tidal bore rushes across the sands cutting of the Island from the mainland. exposed to powerful tides between Normandy and Brittany is located a tidal island on which is built a . and a village that grew up in the shadow of its great walls.

The Benedictine abbey of Mont St Michel

In 1067 a Romanesque style Benedictine abbey was built on Mont Saint Michel dedicated to the archangel Saint Michel. The great Abbey was supported by Duke William of Normandy, in hope that God would give him victory in his claim to the throne of England. After William had taken England in 1066, a small island off the coast of Cornwall was modelled after the Mont St Michel and became a Norman priory named St Michael’s Mount.

The Building of Mont St Michel

In the 11th century, William of Volpiano, the Italian architect who had built Fécamp Abbey in Normandy, was chosen by Richard II, Duke of Normandy, to be the building contractor at Mont Saint Michel. He designed the Romanesque church of the abbey, daringly placing the transept crossing at the top of the mount. Today Mont-Saint-Michel is seen as a building of Romanesque architecture despite its more gothic architectural additions.

The 100 Years War

During the Hundred Years’ War, the Kingdom of England made repeated assaults on Mont Saint Michel Island but was unable to seize it due to the abbey’s fortifications. The English initially besieged the Mont Saint Michel in 1423–24, and then again in 1433–34 with English forces under the command of Thomas de Scales, 7th Baron Scales.

Mont St Michel Turned Into A Prison

The popularity and prestige of Mont Saint Michel as a centre of pilgrimage declined with the Reformation, and by the time of the French Revolution there were scarcely any monks in residence. The abbey was closed and converted into a prison, initially to hold clerical opponents of the republican regime. High-profile political prisoners followed, but by 1836, influential figures—including Victor Hugo—had launched a campaign to restore what was seen as a national architectural treasure. The prison was finally closed in 1863.

One of the Biggest Tourist Destinations in France

Today Mont Saint Michel is one of the biggest tourist destinations in France. It has huge mainland card parks and bus shuttles take tourist across a causeway to the Island.

Mon St Michel is a UNESCO World Heritage Site