Introduction
The general public, tourists as well as historians and art lovers alike take an increasing interest in the Middle Ages and in the Cistercian universe specially. This growing interest is the basis for the foundation of the Charter whose goal is to gather abbeys and Cistercian sites open to the public.
The Cistercian world, a new territory to discover
Since its creation in 1098, Cîteaux left its mark on its time with a will of perfection that attracted some eminent young nobles such as Bernard of Clairvaux. The Order respected with asceticism the two fundamental principles of the Rule of Saint Benedict : to pray and to work.
Cistercian monasteries and their barns, mills, cellars, and associated forges, supported by a faith that regarded work as a prayer, built a true regional development with a structured network of several hundreds sites.
We still can discover, far from cities, these Cistercian abbeys that, according to Léon Pressouyre “continue to teach a lesson written in landscapes, woods and stones. Nor the ideals, nor the historical models had such an impact. The Cistercian teaching on the command of nature, of technology and of constructing has today the value of a major testimony.” The Cistercian world personifies a kind of lost myth, a perfect rural world – almost ecological – while our urban world is the one of disembodied work.
The Cistercian heritage, monuments to administer
Besides ” living ” abbeys that still report to Cîteaux, there is in Europe a large heritage of 750 abbeys (men) and 1000 monasteries (women) created by the Cistercian Order before the Revolution.
Several hundreds of these sites are open to the public, managed by their owners (public or private) or by some associations. They all study the history of the Cistercian movement embodied in the buildings left there. They bring a significant financial support for the restoration of the buildings. They support the local tourism. They also have the difficult task of being in the field, with a growing public wishing to understand the main point of monasticism and the Cistercian universe.
The Charter, a network of Cistercian sites
In 1988, the representatives of several abbeys gathered in Pontigny to share their experience about the organization of visits, about administrative supervisions, collaboration with historians, etc. In 1993, the Charter was born in Fontenay and the statutes underlined the cultural and touristic vocation of the movement, outside all religious and political influence. Each of the members keeps a total autonomy but its membership helps the whole network : major actors of the cultural tourism, lesser-known sites, public properties, private properties, some of them are still occupied by Cistercian communities and other became tourist attractions. Besides the abbeys that have kept their original architecture, the Charter also brings together those that still have some nice vestiges or even simple ruins that remind the Cistercian nature of the place.
The owner of barns, mills or cellars that have contributed to the reputation of the Cistercians are naturally welcome in the network.
In 1994, with the membership of the Belgian abbey of Villers, the Charter became the European Charter of Cistercian Abbeys and Sites. It is now present in more than 11 European countries and three of its members are included on the World Heritage List (UNESCO).
Due to this development and the geographic scattering of the members, the original statutes have been modified in the General Meeting of Alcobaça (1st of May 2009).
However, all members have expressed their wish to keep a spirit of solidarity and friendship inside the Charter, with an impeccable touristic and cultural approach, while respecting the genius of the places they preserve.