Mont Saint-Michel, Normandy, France
{mohn-san-mee-shel'}












This Magnificant Monument Is A Must See!
Located 150 miles northwest of Paris: Mont Saint Michel is not only an important place
of worship, but is also a fortified site.   

Mont Saint Michel is a monastery built over the course of 1000 years following the
Archangel Saint Michael appearing in a dream before the bishop of Avranches.  The first
small chapel on this rocky, cone shaped islet was built in the early 8th century.  The
present Benedictine Abbey that you see today has buildings in the Gothic style that date
from the 13th century.

Sometimes the Mont is in Brittany and other times in Normandy: Brittany and
Normandy are separated by the River Couesnon, the river has changed its bed several
times during past centuries, leaving Mont Saint Michel sometimes in Brittany,
sometimes in Normandy.   Today, Mont Saint Michel is officially in Normandy.  There is
a saying: "The River Couesnon in its lunacy, has gone and left the Mont in Normandy"!  
Nobody knows for how much longer...  

The statue of Archangel Saint Michael towers 560 feet above the English Channel.  Mont
Saint Michel was an island until a causeway was built at the end of the 19th century. It
was separated from the mainland by one mile of sand at low tide, or by water at high
tide. The range in tides is one of the greatest in Europe: it can be 46 feet between high
and low water marks. The bay around the Mont is absolutely flat and the rising tide is
said to sometimes match the speed of a galloping horse.   Many a pilgrim died trying to
walk across the sand during low tide, only to be sucked under by quicksand.

From the year 1000 on, and for 6 consecutive centuries thereafter, the Dukes of
Normandy and the pilgrims financed the construction of additional structures despite
the difficulty of building on an island only accessible by foot. During the French
Revolution, the fortified abbey became a prison for political opponents. Mont Saint
Michel was designated an official French National Heritage Site in 1872 and is restored
on a yearly basis by the French Government, much to the delight of its visitors

QUICK FACTS
Phone: 02-33-89-80-00. Fax: 02-33-70-83-08.
E-mail: hochet@monuments-france.fr
Abbey hours: May 2 to August 30: 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. (last admission at 6 p.m.).
October 1 to April 30: 9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. (last admission at 5 p.m.). Closed on January 1,
May 1 and December 25.
Web site: www.monum.fr
Tours & Admission: Various rates for adults, reduced-rate admission, groups, and
students — based on whether visit is unaccompanied, led by a guide, or with audio
commentary provided.  Prices start at 8 Euro for adults.   Please refer to web site for list
of rates.
Access by car: From Saint-Malo — exit n° 2, secondary roads D 155 and D 797 towards
Pontorson, then secondary road D 976.
From Caen — exit n° 8, main road N 175 towards Rennes, up to Pontaubault, then
secondary roads D 43, D 75 and D 275 to the Mont Saint-Michel.
Access by train: From Paris you can take the train to Rennes and then go by bus to
Mont Saint-Michel.  www.sncf.com.  The train journey takes approximately 2 hours
from Paris Montparnasse to Rennes, then 90 minutes by bus to Mont Saint-Michel.  You
can leave Paris at 9am and be in Mont Saint-Michel by 1pm.




















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