Founded in
1138 by the Earl de Pallars, Pallars was a great Earldom beside Aragon on the
southern slopes of the Pyrenees. The Pallars were a very important family in
Spain with ties to the King of France. They owned lands north and south of the
Pyrenees. The Earl founded the Abbey for one of his sons, Antoine, who became
the first Abbé of Combelongue. Louis VII was a guest there while en route to
St. Jacques de Compostelle in 1154. It was rich and prosperous up to the
fourteenth century. After that it declined during the religious wars, but was
maintained right up to the French revolution. It was secularised, made a
possession of the State and later passed in to private ownership.
It is known
that the Abbey was twice the size it is now and possibly larger. It had a Roman
style church of which a big part still exists. One feature is that it had a
transept much higher than the nave. At the side of the church was a cloister
which measured 38 meters on all its four sides. The cloister of the Abbey of
Moissac measures 42 meters on its four sides which makes one appreciate the
importance of the Abbey of Combelongue in its time.
The Abbey has
two features which qualify it as one of the most original Roman monuments of
the Ariege
Firstly the Abbey
is constructed from brick. All other constructions of the same period are made
of stone, a material abundant in the region. The use of brick was a deliberate aesthetic
choice.
Secondly the
ornamental motifs used, especially on its exterior. The arches are not round as
in Roman arches, but slightly pointed. They are reminiscent of Mudéjar art, as are many other
ornamental details of the Abbey. Mudéjar art is the influence of Arabic art in
western construction after the Christian conquest. After the Moors were beaten,
some stayed behind, especially in Spain, employed as masons. They were called
Mudéjar, hence the name of their style of art. It is peculiar that their art
manifested itself throughout Spain, but hardly in France. The explanation is
that the Earl of Pallars brought an architect to build the Abbey from Spain.
The Abbey underwent reconstruction after the religious wars which explains the
use of stone in several segments of wall.
Fragments of
the cloister are on display and now and then some pieces still turn up. As did
a pillar, which an inhabitant of Rimont found used as a baluster of the
stairway in his house. He donated it to the Abbey.
All photos copyright
© to ACW ten Broek
