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Remiremont (Municipality, Vosges, France)

by Pascal Vagnat

Presentation of Remiremont
Municipal flag of Remiremont

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Presentation of Remiremont

Remiremont (9,180 inhabitants, Romarimontains) is a city located in the upper valley of Moselle. The city, located on the axis Benelux-Basle, is the gate to the Upper Vosges and one of the industrial centers of south Lorraine.

In 620, Romaric (d. 653) and Amé founded a monastery on a small mount dominating the confluency of the rivers Moselle and Moselotte. Romaric was a leude (a King's direct vassal) from the Kingdom of Austrasia, then the more advanced of the competing Frankish kingdoms. Amé was a predicating monk, disciple of the famous Irish monk St. Columban (c. 540-615). The monastery of Remiremont was the first women's monastery in Lorraine. Originally, 80 noble ladies were housed there.
Two centuries later, the monastery, deemed too small, was rebuilt on the sandy left bank of the river Moselle. The city that developed around the new monastery kept the name of the ancient monastery, named after his founder Romarici Mons.

Progressively, the monastery was transformed into a secular, feudal community ruled by canonesses, the Remiremont Chapter. Members of the Chapter had to have eight degrees of noble lineage (quartiers de noblesse), four on each parental side. The Abbess of the Chapter bore the title of Empire Princess and obeyed directly to the German Emperor. Religious affairs depended directly on the Pope. The Dukes of Lorraine were "devoted" to the abbey, i.e., they had to protect it without being allowed to take any benefit from the wealth of the abbey. Accordingly, the dukes attempted several times to took the control of the abbey, to no avail.
The Chapter of Remiremont had several possessions, stretching far beyond the limits of Lorraine. The Abbess was elected by the Chapter and lived in the abbey palace. She was granted one fourth of the income of the abbey. The remaining income was shared among c. 50 canonesses, all of them being from the noblest families of France, Burgundy, Lorraine and the German Empire. Each canoness lived in a private on-site-accomodation located inside the abbey walls. The life in the Chapter was rich in festivals and celebrations. The canonesses did not take their vows and could leave the Chapter after a few years to marry, but they had to attend religious celebrations.
The canonesses played the role of Lords of Remiremont and were often helpful to the inhabitants of the city, especially during epidemics and starvation periods. They often used part of the abbey income to help the inhabitants.
The canonesses were so beloved that the Romarimontains petitioned to keep the abbey alive after the French Revolution. However, the Dames Nobles were expelled and seals were affixes to the door of the abbey church on 7 December 1790. Fortunately, the abbey church and palace, as well as several canonness' houses from the XVIIth-XVIIIth century have been preserved until now.

The Dames Nobles