Ourscamp Abbey

A few kilometres from Noyon in the Upper Oise Valley, the Abbey of Our Lady in Ourscamp, founded in 1129, is the second oldest Cistercian foundation in Picardy. It was destroyed and rebuilt several times. Time and war contributed greatly to the abbey's transformations: in turn a place of worship, hospital and manufactory, it has had various functions over the centuries.

Admire the ruins of its abbey church's Gothic choir, forming a magnificent skeleton of stones. The nave, of which nothing remains, had nine bays which are now represented by fir trees. Lastly, the 13th-century infirmary, also known as the room of the dead, is another interesting relic to discover.

For the record, the origin of the abbey's name ("ours" means "bear" in French) is thought to date back to the 7th century. In 641, King Dagobert's counsellor began work on the building, and the story goes that he used a bear to carry the heaviest materials...