The abbey on its rock in the bay between Normandy and Brittany is lord of the Mount and the little town on its slopes, of villages round the bay such as Genêts and Ardevon, and of its own dependent priory of St Michael's Mount in Cornwall.
Under Robert of Torigni, Henry II's adviser, it reached its height. On 1 January 1200 it is a Norman house on the Breton frontier of a duchy at war.
Who holds it
- Name
- Jordan (Jourdain)
- Title
- Abbot of Mont-Saint-Michel
- Since
- 1191
- Confidence
- medium
French Wikipedia names Martin and then Jordan as abbots after Robert of Torigni (died 1186); Jordan's dates (1191-1212) are from general knowledge, not checked against a source here. His successor Ralph des Îles builds the Merveille (1211-1228).
What it holds
- The Mount and the town on its slopes
- Genêts, the abbey's port across the bay, and Ardevon on the shore
- Saint-Pair, an old barony of the abbey near Granville (not checked against a source here)
- St Michael's Mount in Cornwall, a dependent priory
How it was acquired
Ducal gifts since the tenth century.
How things stand that morning
Held.
Wealth
Pilgrims to Saint Michael, the bay's fisheries and salt, and the rents of its baronies.
Threats
- The Breton border war: in 1204 Guy of Thouars, leading Bretons for Philip, will burn the Mount's town and most of the abbey
Advocates and rivals
The duke (John); the Bretons across the bay, Arthur's party.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The holdings named come from French Wikipedia's article on the abbey, except Saint-Pair, which is general knowledge.
On the map: Only the best attested holdings are drawn.
Primary sources for Angevin lands
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Alberic of Trois-Fontaines (about 1227 to 1241, at the Cistercian abbey of Trois-Fontaines in Champagne). The widest net of any Latin chronicle for 1200, compiled from dozens of sources, many now lost. Read online
- Chronicles of Saint-Martial of Limoges, Bernard Itier and other monks of Saint-Martial; Geoffrey of Vigeois for the earlier chronicle (Geoffrey's chronicle to 1184; Bernard Itier's notes about 1195 to 1225). Bernard Itier, librarian of Saint-Martial, kept dated notes through 1200 of what reached Limoges: Richard's death at Chalus in 1199, the viscounts of Limoges and the lords of the Limousin, John's passage through Aquitaine in 1200 and the affairs of Angouleme and the Lusignans, and the abbey's own elections and prices. Read online
- Chronicles of the Churches of Anjou (Saint-Aubin, Saint-Serge, Saint-Florent and others), Various (monks of Angers and the Loire) (11th to 13th centuries; the Saint-Aubin annals run to the 1220s). The Angevin houses' own annals of the succession crisis in their city: Arthur received at Angers in 1199 with Constance and the Breton and Angevin barons, John's counter-moves, the defection of William des Roches and the Angevin lords to John, and the peace of 1200 that left Arthur John's vassal. Read online
- The Great Chronicle of Tours, Anonymous (a canon of Saint-Martin of Tours) (about 1227). The Loire valley's view of the Angevin succession. Read online
- Universal Chronicle of the Anonymous of Laon, Anonymous (an English-born canon of Laon) (about 1219). A Picard chronicle whose author had lived in England and keeps an eye on both kingdoms. Read online
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
- Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
- English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
14 more in the sources library for France and Iberia.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.