When was the abbey of Clairefontaine founded?

In 1131 by Guy de Jonvelle, as a Cistercian abbey affiliated with Morimond.

Why was the abbey rebuilt in the seventeenth century?

It had suffered considerable damage over preceding centuries, particularly during wars and from the Swedish troops in 1636. By 1644 it was described as ruined.

What became of the site after the Revolution?

The monastery was sold in 1793 to Jean-François Estienne, who established a glassworks there, followed by a pottery factory that closed in 1932.

Château de Clairefontaine

Clairefontaine Castle

Polaincourt-et-Clairefontaine

Access

No visits on recordNo opening hours or ticketing found

Where: Polaincourt-et-Clairefontaine

To make a day of it

Open within 20 km

Château de Bougey (Bougey Castle)from €519 km

This week in the agenda

Marche solidaire Octobre rose et novembre bleuSun, Nov 8 · château des Bouly15 km

Château de Clairefontaine stands in Polaincourt-et-Clairefontaine (Haute-Saône), in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of France. The building is registered as a historic monument (dating recorded in the Mérimée database: second half of the 17th century). The building is privately owned and no visits are on record.

Clairefontaine Castle stands on the site of a former Cistercian abbey founded in the twelfth century. After centuries of warfare and destruction, the complex was rebuilt from the seventeenth century onward, before entering a period of industrial use in the nineteenth century as a glassworks and later a pottery factory. Its facades, roofs, and certain interior spaces of the central building retain protected status as historical monuments.

What to know

The abbey, founded in 1131 as a Cistercian daughter house, suffered repeated damage from the fourteenth to seventeenth centuries before systematic reconstruction between 1690 and 1707.
The present building largely results from seventeenth-century work, including new timber framing, tile roofing, dormitory reconstruction, and cloister repair.
After the Revolution, the site successively housed a glassworks until 1803 and a pottery factory until 1932, followed by a change of use in 1938.
Protected status covers the facades, roofs, and certain interior spaces of the central building.

Where this château is

Polaincourt-et-Clairefontaine · Haute-Saône · Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

Map of the area around Château de Clairefontaine

Loading the map…

This châteauChâteaux within 40 km

Address

70210 Polaincourt-et-Clairefontaine

Directions open from wherever you are, by car or public transport.

Get directions View on a map

Heritage status: Registered historic monument (inscrit); Mérimée record PA00102252
Period of construction: second half of the 17th century

In pictures

Frequently asked

When was the abbey of Clairefontaine founded?: In 1131 by Guy de Jonvelle, as a Cistercian abbey affiliated with Morimond.
Why was the abbey rebuilt in the seventeenth century?: It had suffered considerable damage over preceding centuries, particularly during wars and from the Swedish troops in 1636. By 1644 it was described as ruined.
What became of the site after the Revolution?: The monastery was sold in 1793 to Jean-François Estienne, who established a glassworks there, followed by a pottery factory that closed in 1932.