Avranches, France Summary

photo by reewins

AVRANCHES is the nearest large town to Mont St-Michel, and it has always had close connections with the abbey. The Mont’s original church was founded by a bishop of Avranches, spurred on by the Archangel Michael, who supposedly became so impatient with the lack of progress that he prodded a hole in the bishop’s skull – still to be seen in Avranches’ St-Gervais basilica. Robert of Torigny, a subsequent abbot of St-Michel, played host in the town on several occasions to Henry II of England, the most memorable being when Henry was obliged, barefoot and bareheaded, to do public penance for the murder of Thomas à Becket, on May 22, 1172. The arena for this act of contrition was Avranches cathedral, designed, most inexpertly, by de Torigny himself: the cathedral swiftly “crumbled and fell for want of proper support”, and all that marks the site today is a fenced-off platform – the plate-forme. A more vivid evocation of the area’s medieval splendours comes from the illuminated manuscripts from the Mont, on display in the town museum (April & May daily except Tues 9.30am-noon & 2-6pm; June-Sept daily 9.30am-noon & 2-6pm; 15F/€2.20).