St Michel de Cuixa

There are two important abbeys within a few miles of us, one up the mountain and this one on the plain.

It is in the small village of Codalet, just south of Prades in the Conflent. It is the Benedictine Catalan Abbey of Saint-Michel de Cuixa, one of the most important ancient monuments in the south of France.

Its influence was felt across Catalonia primarily due to the regency of Abbot Oliva (c. 971-1046). Oliva was the son of a noble Catalan house who abdicated his secular possessions to take up the Benedictine habit. He is considered one of the spiritual founders of Catalonia. A great writer he produced a ceaseless stream of works including Arabic manuscripts that he translated into Latin for the benefit of all Europe. He also created the Assemblies of Peace and Truce, the seeds of the future Catalan courts, to aid the nobles in the administration of the realm. He died at his monastery at Cuixà in 1046.

The Abbey dates back to the ninth century and has benefited from a delicate restoration project and is a fascinating site, especially its cloisters. The pre-Romanesque church with traditional Byzantine arches dates from the 10th century. The intriguing bell tower and subterranean crypt was a later addition in the 11th century during the early Romanesque period while the remains of the imposing cloisters and tribune date back to the 12th century.

A small community of benedictine monks live here but Saint-Michel de Cuixa Abbey remains open throughout the year to visit and enjoy. It also plays host to a large part of the Prades summer music festival, first staged in 1950 by the Catalan cellist Pablo Casals, exiled from Franco's Spain.

Tonight we are celebrating the sale of our house which seems to have taken for ever to complete. That will have to be brief as there is also a badminton match.