Accueil Organise your stay Visits Châteaux & monuments Varennes Cistercian Abbey
Cistercian abbey of the 12th century. The nave of the church, the prior's house, the abbot's house and remains of the old cloister and refectory remain. Residence from 1900 to 1920 of the photographer Jenny de Vasson.
Description
Part of the church and the Abbot’s house This Cistercian Abbey was built at the bottom of a valley in the middle of the twelfth century. It was a resting point on the way to Saint James of Compostela. Over time, the Abbey grew rich enough to rival the Abbey at Noirlac (Cher), with lands of over 3000 hectares. George Sand mentioned it in her novel Les Beaux Messieurs de Bois Doré (The Fine Gentlemen of Bois Doré). At the beginning of the twentieth century, Varennes became home to a ‘salon’ where various painters (Fernand Maillaud, Bernard Naudin) and writers (Maurice Rollinat, André Maurois, Roger Martin du Gard) met, and whose central figure was the photographer Jenny de Vasson. Nearby : Le Magny twelfth century, added to in the fifteenth century, next to a Benedictine priory dating from.
Visit
opening
Opening hours from 28 June to 07 September 2025 | |
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Monday | Open from 01:00 pm to 07:00 pm |
Tuesday | Open from 01:00 pm to 07:00 pm |
Wednesday | Open from 01:00 pm to 07:00 pm |
Thursday | Open from 01:00 pm to 07:00 pm |
Friday | Open from 01:00 pm to 07:00 pm |
Saturday | Open from 01:00 pm to 07:00 pm |
Sunday | Open from 01:00 pm to 07:00 pm |
price
Free rate
services
equipment
animals friendly