Saint-Avold

Saint-Avold grew around the Benedictine abbey of Saint-Nabor, whose name was gradually transformed into that of the town. The abbey possessed relics of the martyr Nabor and enjoyed the protection of the bishops of Metz. Its community and lands made it a lasting centre of religious life in the eastern part of Lorraine.

The monks adopted the Bursfeld reform under Abbot Adam of Roupeldange in 1512 and joined the Lorraine congregation of Saint-Vanne in 1607. Their conventual buildings were rebuilt between 1720 and 1740, followed by the abbey church. The French Revolution brought the community’s monastic life to an end in March 1790. In 1792 the abbey church was exchanged for the old parish church, while the convent buildings passed to other uses and were sold in 1798.