Montbenoît
Encyclopedia
Montbenoît is a commune
in the Doubs
department in the Franche-Comté
region
in eastern France
.
in the Jura mountains
.
, gave land in the upper Doubs valley
to Humbert, Archbishop of Besançon
, to found an abbey
. The local summit
in the area was at the time called Mont Benoît after a religious hermit
named Benoît who resided there. Humbert invited monks to come from Valais
and an abbey
under St. Columbanus's rule was built by a monk called Nardouin (Norduin) in 1141-1142. The town grew up nearby the abbey. Both the abbey and the town were named Montbenoît after the local summit. The abbey later came under the Augustine rule.
In 1947, Montbenoît was proclaimed capital of the Republic of Saugeais
by Georges Pourchet, a local hotel owner, who also created the republic on the spot.
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Doubs
Doubs
Doubs is a department the Franche-Comté region of eastern France named after the Doubs River.-History:As early as the 13th century, inhabitants of the northern two-thirds of Doubs spoke the Franc-Comtois language, a dialect of Langue d'Oïl. Residents of the southern third of Doubs spoke a dialect...
department in the Franche-Comté
Franche-Comté
Franche-Comté the former "Free County" of Burgundy, as distinct from the neighbouring Duchy, is an administrative region and a traditional province of eastern France...
region
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...
in eastern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Geography
The commune lies 14 km (8.7 mi) north of PontarlierPontarlier
Pontarlier is a commune and one of the two sub-prefectures of the Doubs department in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France.-History:...
in the Jura mountains
Jura mountains
The Jura Mountains are a small mountain range located north of the Alps, separating the Rhine and Rhone rivers and forming part of the watershed of each...
.
History
In the early 12th century, Landry, Lord of JouxFort de Joux
The Fort de Joux or Château de Joux is a castle, transformed into a fort, located in La Cluse-et-Mijoux, in the Doubs département, in the Jura mountains of France. It commands the mountain pass "Cluse de Pontarlier"....
, gave land in the upper Doubs valley
Doubs River
The Doubs is a 453 km long river in eastern France and western Switzerland, left tributary of the Saône. Its source is near Mouthe in the western Jura mountains....
to Humbert, Archbishop of Besançon
Besançon
Besançon , is the capital and principal city of the Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It had a population of about 237,000 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2008...
, to found an abbey
Abbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
. The local summit
Summit (topography)
In topography, a summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. Mathematically, a summit is a local maximum in elevation...
in the area was at the time called Mont Benoît after a religious hermit
Hermit
A hermit is a person who lives, to some degree, in seclusion from society.In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Christian who lives the eremitic life out of a religious conviction, namely the Desert Theology of the Old Testament .In the...
named Benoît who resided there. Humbert invited monks to come from Valais
Valais
The Valais is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland in the southwestern part of the country, around the valley of the Rhône from its headwaters to Lake Geneva, separating the Pennine Alps from the Bernese Alps. The canton is one of the drier parts of Switzerland in its central Rhône valley...
and an abbey
Abbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
under St. Columbanus's rule was built by a monk called Nardouin (Norduin) in 1141-1142. The town grew up nearby the abbey. Both the abbey and the town were named Montbenoît after the local summit. The abbey later came under the Augustine rule.
In 1947, Montbenoît was proclaimed capital of the Republic of Saugeais
Republic of Saugeais
The Republic of Saugeais is a long-lived self-proclaimed micronation located in eastern France, in the département of Doubs. The republic comprises the 11 municipalities of Les Alliés, Arçon, Bugny, La Chaux-de-Gilley, Gilley, Hauterive-la-Fresse, La Longeville, Montflovin,...
by Georges Pourchet, a local hotel owner, who also created the republic on the spot.