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Prée (La)

Prée (La) - Abbaye In 1128, Bernard de Clairvaux sent a group of monks to set up a monastery in Berry. In 1141, he himself opened La Prée which became a royal abbey in 1190. Thanks to its wealth, La Prée became the third largest abbey in the region and the most important Cistercian abbey, owning more than 5000 hectares. Although its growth was hindered by the Hundred Years' War, the abbey continued to flourish until the Renaissance. This marked a period of decline for the abbey with the transformation of the farms worked by colonist labourers into smallholdings, the implementation of the ?commendam,? the religious wars and a big fire at the beginning of the 17th century. In the middle of the 18th century, the relaxation of the ?commendatory regime? and the power of the prior, Dom Bourgoin, revived the Abbey, bringing about important developments as it became a training place for the Cistercians of Berry. The French Revolution put a stop to religious life when the last monks left La Prée. Following this, the estate passed successively through the hands of the bourgeoisie. Since 1954, after being donated to the petits frères des Pauvres (founded by A. Marquiset in 1946), it has been a place for old people in difficult situations to rest and take holidays. In 1992, with the support of the association Pour Que L'Esprit Vive, an artist's residence was set up at La Prée. Thus a double life, both social and artistic, is led there today.

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