Basilica of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine, Vézelay

The thousand-year history of the place began in the year 858/859 with the establishment of a Benedictine abbey by Gerhard (Girard) II, Count of Vienne, in a valley below the present-day town (today Saint-Père sous Vézelay). The monastery, initially a women's monastery, was built according to the founding charter in honor of Christ and the Virgin Mary, and the apostles Peter and Paul were also added as patron saints in early times. Equipped with royal and papal privileges and given relics of Saints Pontianus and Andeolus by Pope Nicholas I, it was converted into a male monastery in the following years. Under the direction of Abbot Odo (Eudes), who had come from Autun, it was surrounded by a wall and, after being plundered by the Normans (887), relocated to the neighboring hill, today's location, for better defense.

Vezelay is a beautiful little town and contains the famous Vézelay Abbey which is a Benedictine and Cluniac monastery. It was constructed between 1120 and 1150. Unfortunately during my visit the abbey was undergoing extensive renovation.

Ste-Marie-Madeleine (Vézelay)

In 1925 the Pope raised it to the status of "Basilica Minor".