La Baie du Mont Saint-Michel
La Baie du Mont Saint-Michel is located between Brittany and the Normandy peninsula of Cotentin.
The western headland of the Baie du Mont Saint-Michel, Pointe du Grouin, offers views on the Île des Landes (a long barren outcrop), the Phare de la Pierre-de-Herpin and - on a clear day - even on the outlines of the Mont Saint-Michel.
Due to significant tidal movements (>10m) a large part of the bay is uncovered at low tide. Three little rivers merge into the bay and cross it at low tide: the Couesnon, the Sée and the Sélune. The tide brings large quantities of sediment in the bay causing the formation of sandbanks and sediment deposits. To a certain degree, these three rivers play an important role in preventing this by driving the sediment back out into the sea. In addition, by regulating the water levels, a dam built over the Couesnon gives the river enough strength to push sediment out to the sea and away from the mount. This prevents future silting up of the bay.
Le Mont Saint-Michel is a tidal island. According to the legend, the archangel Michael, leader of the armies of heaven, appeared in 708 to Aubert of Avranches - the bishop of Avranches - and instructed him to build a church on the rocky islet. The architecture of Mont Saint-Michel Abbey is evidence of the mastery and expertise of several generations of builders. The construction of the Abbey over a period of 1,300 years, on an inhospitable site, represents an undisputed technical and artistic masterpiece. In 966 Benedictine monks settled there and initiated the construction and growth of the new monastery.The Abbey very quickly became a major place of pilgrimage in the Christian West, but also one of the centres of medieval culture where a large number of manuscripts were produced and stored.
Mont Saint-Michel was given the nickname "City of the Books".
Positioned on the border between Normandy and Brittany, the Mount was both a place of passage and a fortress for the Duchy of Normandy. From the 14th century onwards, the successive conflicts during the Hundred Years War between France and England required new, powerful fortifications to be constructed. The Mount managed to resist attacks by the English army for nearly 30 years. Following the French Revolution, the Church was declared "national property", the monks of Mont Saint-Michel were driven away and the "Mont Libre" became a prison for refractory priests in 1793. In 1811, an Imperial decree transformed the Abbey into a reformatory, mainly for common law prisoners and political prisoners (enemies of the regime).
A causeway, constructed in 1878, made access to the Mount easier. In 1969, a small community of Benedictine monks was established at the Abbey, in 2001 the community was replaced by the Monastic Fraternity of Jerusalem. The actions by the State to conserve the site led to it being listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 under the title of "Mont Saint-Michel and its bay".
