Monks of Saint-Maurice would have done everything for a drop of wine...
And also
The tops
St-Maurice abbey, near Clohars-Carnoët, on river Laïta's banks, is lost in the middle of nowhere!
Just imagine this place, in the Middle-Ages... a hostile nature, a dark and thick forest where wolves used to swarm...
On these lands, given by duke Conan III, abbot Maurice Duault and 12 Cistercian monks from Langonnet decided to raise an abbey, in 1177.
They started to clear forests, drain the water off swamps...
Finally, nature became hospitable. Water brought them life, forest an abundant source of food: a perfect self-sufficiency advocated by Benedictine rule.
But do you heard about miracles made by saint Maurice? I can tell you about the story of that ship which came from island of Groix and passed by the abbey.
Monks hailed the captain, asked him for wine. Alas... no more wine on board! It only left water... but suddenly... the liquid turned into wine! The ship gave the delicious nectar to our monks...
But whoa, so many ruins, here! Why did they abandon the place? In fact, monks left the place during the French revolution: the estate was forgotten until 1991, when Littoral Conservatory decided to own the abbey...
The place is so enchanting, with the abbot dwelling (18th century), the abbey church ruins and the beautiful chapter room (13th century)...