Profile
Son of a village priest, he became a priest himself. Archpriest at Rennes, France where he was known both as a reformer (which often stirs up trouble), and as a peace-maker. Teacher at Angers, France. Hermit in the forest of Craon, France where he founded a community of canons. He was a noted preacher, and when Pope Urban II heard him speak in 1095, the pope ordered Robert to devote himself to preaching. He travelled the region, preaching missions, attracting would-be students, and being accused by his detractors of sleeping with the local women who listened to him. He founded a double monastery that became the modern Fontevraud-l’Abbaye in Pays-de-la-Loire, France. He wrote a Rule for the community and handed over its administration to an abbess; it soon became the mother-house of the Order of Fontevraud, and the Rule received papal approval in Calixtus II in 1119.
Born
- Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany (modern Arbrissel, France)
- 1116 of natural causes
Additional Information
- Book of Saints, by the Monks of Ramsgate
- Lives of the Saints, by Father Alban Butler
- Medieval Religion Listserv, by John Dillon
- Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
MLA Citation
- “Blessed Robert of Arbrissel“. Saints.SQPN.com. 24 February 2013. Web. 20 June 2013. <>