Corbie Abbey, Benedictine monastery in Corbie, France
Corbie Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in northern France with thick stone walls, two octagonal towers, and a large church showing architectural features from different periods. The surviving structures include parts of the church, a library, and a cloister where visitors can understand how a medieval monastery was organized and used.
A queen founded this monastery in the 7th century and populated it with monks from another monastery in the east. Over the centuries, the place became an important center of knowledge and written culture.
The monastery's scriptors developed a writing system that spread across Western Europe and became standard in medieval times. Visitors today can still sense the presence of those monks who spent their days copying and creating texts in the surviving rooms.
The site is open daily from April through October and visitors can walk through the different areas at a relaxed pace. You should allow time to discover the architectural details and understand how the spaces were connected and used.
The monastery's scriptorium produced some of the earliest medieval illustrations, including early depictions of saints and biblical scenes. This skilled work shows the artistic range that went beyond simply copying texts.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
