On November 2, a devastating fire consumed the ancient Mont-Dieu monastery in the Ardennes,a centuries-old French heritage site.
Ms. Anne Fraipont, the mayor of the nearby village of Tannay-le-Mont-Dieu, expressed her sorrow over the loss of the monastery she referred to as the “Notre-Dame of the Ardennes.” The site had been designated a historic monument in 1946. She noted that the building had contained a great deal of wood and lamented that now “there is no longer a roof, no longer a floor—only the walls remain.”
The smoke was discovered by nearby walkers, who raised the alarm. The causes of the fire remain unknown.
According to the Ardennes fire and rescue services, firefighters reached the scene at 10 a.m. local time and managed to bring the fire under control before 4 p.m.
The fire brigade reported that the extent of the damage was so severe that the monastery was at risk of collapsing.
Hidden within the dense forests of the northeastern Ardennes, the Carthusian monastery of Mont-Dieu dates back nearly nine centuries. Originally constructed in 1130, it was later rebuilt in the 17th century before the French Revolution compelled the monks to abandon the site.