Abbey of St. Solesmes

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ABenedictinemonastery in Department of Sarthe, near Sablé,France. It was founded in 1010 by Geoffrey, seigneur of Sablé, as apriory dependent on the Abbey of St-Pierre de la Couture atLe Mans. During the Hundred Years' War it was twice pillaged and once almost entirely destroyed by fire. Apart from these disasters its history was uneventful for several centuries. Towards the end of the fifteenth century the rebuilding of the church was commenced, Prior Philibert de la Croix changing it from basilica form to that of a Latin cross. His successor, Jean Bougler (1505-1556), completed the restoration of the church, added the tower, and rebuilt thecloisters,sacristy, andlibrary. Under his direction two famous groups of statuary, known as the "Saints of Solesmes", were set up in the church. It is not known forcertain who thesculptors were, but the groups were probably the work of several hands. They are placed in the twotranseptalchapels and form one of the chief attractions of the place. One represents the entombment ofOur Lord and the other various episodes of the Dolours ofOur Lady. The groups contain eight and fifteen life-size figures respectively, besides various subsidiary figures, and are adorned withbas-reliefs and other sculptural ornamentation. Some of the faces, notably that ofMary Magdalen, are wonderfully expressive; that ofJoseph of Arimathea is supposed to be a portrait of King René (d. 1480). In the sixteenth century these masterpieces were in danger of being destroyed by theHuguenots and other Iconoclasts, but themonks saved them by erecting barricades. Jean Bougler was the last Regular Prior of Solesmes, a succession ofcommendatory priors being appointed after his death. In 1664 themonastery was absorbed by theCongregation of St. Maur, and in 1722 it was, with the exception of the church, entirely rebuilt on a larger scale. In 1791 it was suppressed and the buildings passed into private hands, so remaining for forty years. In 1831 theproperty was put up for sale, andDom Prosper Guéranger, then a youngpriest of twenty-seven, who had been born in the neighborhood and had long lamented its state ofdesecration was inspired to acquire it and restore it toGod and theChurch as a home of monastic life. He set about raising thenecessary funds, bought the entireproperty, and, with five other like-mindedzealouspriests, took possession in 1833. Three years later, with the full approval of theBishop ofLe Mans, they commencedthe Benedictine life. In 1837Dom Guéranger was professed atRome and a few months laterPope Gregory XVI raised Solesmes to the rank of anabbey, namingDom Guéranger firstabbot and formally erecting at the same time the new "Congregation ofFrance" with Solesmes as the mother-house and itsabbot as superior-general. In course oftime daughterhouses have been founded from Solesmes, viz: Ligugé (1853), Silos inSpain (1880), Glanfeuil (1892), and Fontanelle (1893), these four being oldmonasteries restored; also new foundations atMarseilles (1865), Farnborough inEngland and Wisque (1895),Paris (1893), and Kergonan (1897). Since its restoration Solesmes has been dissolved by the French Government no less than four times. In 1880, 1882, and 1883 themonks were ejected by force but, receiving hospitality in the neighbourhood, succeeded each time in re-entering theirabbey. At the final expulsion in 1903 they were, like all the other religious ofFrance,obliged to leave the country. Between the years 1890 and 1900 an entirely new and imposingmonastery had been added to the existing buildings, which had become too small for the growing community. Hardly, however, had themonks got settled in it when they were driven forth. They then established themselves in the Isle of Wight, where, after a few years' sojourn in a rented house at Appuldurcombe, they have now nearly completed the building of a newabbey at Quarr, on what was formerly monasticproperty.

The community of Solesmes has achieved a worldwide reputation for its erudition and its devotion to monastic andliturgical studies, the foundation for which was laid byDom Guéranger himself. Amongst those who have thus brought fame to theabbey may be mentioned Dom Pitra, afterwardscardinal and Librarian at the Vatican, Dom Pothier, Dom Cabrol, Dom Férotin, Dom Mocquereau, Dom Besse, Dom Quentin, and Dom Leclercq. But the greatest work, perhaps, done by themonks of Solesmes, and that for which they are best known, has been the restoration of thetrueGregorian chant of theChurch.Dom Guéranger set himself the task of resuscitating soundliturgical traditions inFrance at a time when such were at their lowest ebb. He revived the accent and rhythm ofplainsong, which had been lost, and in restoring thetrue text of the chant he laid down the principle, which has since been always strictly adhered to, that when variousmanuscripts of different periods and places agreed on a version, there existed the most correct text. He entrusted the work to Dom Jansions and Dom Pothier, the latter producing his "Les Mélodies Grégoriennes" in 1880 and the "Liber Gradualis" in 1883. These, as well as many other publications, were all printed at the Solesmes Imprimerie, which for many years was an important appanage of theabbey. Unfortunately the entire plant was confiscated by the French government at the suppression and since then the Solesmes books have been printed by Desclée ofTournai. Dom Pothier followed the Reims-Cambrai edition as far as possible, so as to shelter himself under the authority it still possessed, though the still higher authority ofRatisbonproved an obstacle in his way. Through this desire to be conciliatory, and also the insufficiency ofmanuscripts, the absence of any competent check, and the want of practical preparatory trial, the earlier Solesmes editions were bound to be defective. But they served their purpose in the return to antiquity and have formed the basis for further research. Dom Pothier's pioneer labours have been followed by those of Dom Mocquereau, whose great work has been the personal training of the SolesmesSchola, which has greatly influenced many others, and the publication of the "Paléographie Musicale". By means of photographic reproductions of scores ofmanuscripts from all the principallibraries ofEurope, a far greater degree of exactness than was possible with mere transcripts which might contain copyists'errors. These reproductions have been brought together and studied at Solesmes and the variants of the different melodies classified according to theirschool or church of origin, date, etc. Intrinsic qualities also have been carefully considered in deciding on the most correct and universal version, but when these criteria haveproved insufficient preference has been given to the Roman version, when there has happened to be one. This method of selection is described in detail, with examples, in the little brochure of Dom Cagin and Dom Mocquereau referred to in the bibliography. The labours of the Solesmes fathers received the highest possible recognition in 1904, whenPope Pius X (Motu Proprio, 25 April, 1904) entrusted particularly to themonks of the French Congregation and to themonastery of Solesmes" the work of preparing an official Vatican edition of theChurch's Chant, and appointed a Commission for the purpose with Dom Pothier as its president. The Gradual has already appeared and the Antiphonal is in preparation. (See PROSPER LOUIS PASCAL GUÉRANGER.)

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