Fontevraud l'Abbaye

Today no chateau! Therefore an Abbey. Actually a former Abbey, founded 1100. The French Revolution had finished the Abbey time, suddenly. Then the building was a prison until the late 1980ies. Now, the abbey is a museum and the French state is the owner.

The tickets

It's good for us men than we have a handicapped pass. We are in France "invalides" and don't need to pay in a state institution, neither our wives. They are our "assistents" and have to care for us.;-))
Apart from that, visitations are not cheap in France.

Fontevraud l'Abbaye is the biggest European Abbey.
Quelle: http://familypedia.wikia.com/wiki/Fontevraud-l'Abbaye

The Plantagenêts

In 12th century the dynasty of the "Plantagenêts" governed there in this region. Their symbol was a branch of broom(French: planta genêt). Geoffrey I. married the daughter of the English King. His son Henry became as Henry II King of England. Big parts of France came to his empire, when he married Eleanor of Aquitaine.

His son Richard the Lionheart, (actually Richard Plantagenêt) was elected as King Richard I. 1189 after a long time of conflicts. He was got famous by his attendance of the 3rd Crusade. Because his ruthless pugnacity he was called Richard the Lionheart.

While he was on the Crusade his brother John Lackland governed the empire. The problem was: He didn't want gave back the government to his brother. Thereupon Richard did a cease-fire with Sultan Saladin and hurried home. There they denied him a return.

After many adventures he took power back in France and died in 1199.

In the church of the Abbey of Fontevraud we saw the tombs of Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard the Lionheart and Isabella of Angoulême (2nd wife of his brother John Lackland).