The relics of a great saint

Saint Sever, who was named Bishop of Avranches around the year 523, ventured deep into the forest, where he founded a small monastic community and built a small chapel. In the year 990, monks took the relics to Rouen (thus the origin of the neighbourhood of Saint-Sever on the Left Bank of the Seine).
The Benedictine abbey was founded in the 11th century by Richard Goz, Viscount of Avranches, and his son Hugues Le Loup, who spread its renown all the way to England by building several priories there. The buildings, now in the centre of the small town of Saint-Sever, are marked by 18th-century renovations. The abbey church, built in the 13th century in the Gothic style, has lost several bays of its nave, which explains why the belltower is now separated from the rest of the church. It contains lovely 13th-century stained-glass windows and an interesting rood beam.
It became a parish church in the early 19th century, and the abbey buildings today are home to schools and administrative offices. The façade of the abbot’s lodge, now the town hall, is a lovely two-coloured granite construction, in which one can admire the horseshoe staircase.

Free tourist brochures available in  English and German.

New : A 3D reconstitution of the abbey is now available. You can borrow a free tablet directly there to now more about the history of Saint-Sever abbey.