Chelles Abbey 1.33

Chelles Abbey was a Frankish monastery founded c. 658 during the early medieval period. It was intended initially as a monastery for women; then its reputation for great learning grew, and with the afflux of men wishing to follow the monastic life, a parallel male community was established, creating a double monastery.The abbey stood in the Val-de-Marne near Paris until it fell victim to the disestablishment of the Catholic Church in 1792 during the French Revolution and was dismantled. The abbey housed an important scriptorium and held the advantage of powerful royal connections throughout the Carolingian era.HistoryBefore its religious designation, the site of the abbey, Cala had held a royal Merovingian villa. Queen Clotilde, the wife of Clovis I, had previous built a small chapel there dedicated to Saint George circa 511.King Chilperic I and his wife, Fredegund, frequently resided at Cala; Chilperic was assassinated in 584 while hunting there.