The stunning French Abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel has just celebrated its 1,000th anniversary

Beloved French Abbey Mont Saint Michel reached an advanced age. It has succeeded 1000 years since the first stone was laid.

The millennium of a UNESCO World Heritage site and major tourist magnet will be celebrated in Normandy through November with exhibitions, dance performances and concerts. And now a presidential visit.

french president, Emmanuel MacronHe went there on Monday and gave a speech calling on the French to “do more” on global and existential challenges like climate change. He drew a comparison with the abbey, which has stood strong over time and embodies the “French spirit” of “resilience” and “resistance”.

Since the ex Francois Mitterrand They did so in 1983, and France’s leaders have flocked to this iconic site to deliver political messages. In 2007, the ex Nicolas Sarkozy He even launched his presidential campaign there.

Macron’s presidential advisers said of the visit that the “walls and eternity of the mountain” seem to bear the “concepts of resistance and resilience” to the D-Day landings being celebrated this week in the same region.

Macron also visited a new exhibition that traces the history of a Romanesque monastery through 30 objects and pieces, including The statue of Saint Michael has been restored. Legend has it that Archangel Michael appeared in 708, duly instructing the bishop of nearby Avanes to build him a church on a rocky outcrop.

The exhibition, which took two years to prepare, opened last month. Covers the intricate construction process of what is considered an architectural gem on a rocky island linked to the mainland only by Bridge narrow at high tide.

was built four cellars on a granite tip with the chapel on top. The exhibition explains how the original structure, built in 966, became too small for pilgrims, prompting builders to create an 11th-century monastery that stands to this day.

France spent more than 32 million euros ($34 million) over 15 years to restore the building, and the task is about to be completed. In recent years, the authorities have also tried to protect the environment around the monument from the impact of mass tourism.

One of the most popular French destinations outside of Paris, the island of Mont-Saint-Michel has attracted 2.8 million visitors last year, including 1.3 million for the monastery. It was not closed to visitors for the presidential visit, but the local authorities are taking steps to make it run as smoothly as possible.

(with information from the AP)

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