Abbaye Sainte-Marie
de Fontfroide

Fontfroide Abbey is a Cistercian abbey located on the territory of the commune of Narbonnea, in the department of Aude in France. Initially a Benedictine abbey (1093), it became part of the Cistercian order between 1144 and 1145. In the second half of the twelfth century, it received significant land donations from Ermengarde de Narbonne, then in the middle of the thirteenth century, from important donations in land and in kind from Olivier de Termes which allow him to carry out new constructions. During the Albigensian Crusade, she was the spearhead of Catholic orthodoxy. In the 14th century, one of its abbots, Jacques Fournier, was elected pope under the name of Benedict XII. The abbey is classified from 1862 as historical monuments2. Today, Fontfroide Abbey is a member of the Charter of Cistercian Abbeys and Sites in Europe.

Fontfroide Abbey is currently a private monument owned by the descendants of Gustave and Madeleine Fayet.