Orval Becomes A Cistercian Abbey

In 1132, Orval became a Cistercian abbey when monks from the Abbey of Trois-Fontaines arrived after the existing community had requested affiliation with the Cistercian Order. This continued the monastic history of a site first settled in 1070 by monks from Calabria and later held by a community of canons. This entry marks Orval’s transition from an early medieval foundation into the Cistercian tradition that later shaped its identity. It is not yet a brewing milestone, but it is an important step in the long institutional history behind the modern Trappist Abbey of Orval and the later Orval brewery.