Abbaye Notre-Dame de Maylis

Abbaye Notre-Dame de Maylis is a small Olivetan Benedictine monastery set on a hilltop in the Chalosse region of the Landes department, on the road between Saint-Sever and Orthez. The site carries two layers of history at once: an old Marian pilgrimage site and a monastic community that only settled here in the mid-20th century. For visitors passing through southwestern France, it offers a quiet stop where a plain monastery church, rolling countryside and the scent of dried herbs sum up rural Gascony rather well.

How old is the site, and when did it become an abbey?

Devotion to Mary on the Maylis hill goes back to at least the 15th century, when a modest church already stood here and local priests used it to teach the faith to the surrounding population. Monks did not arrive until 1946, when a community of Olivetan Benedictines took over the site. Growth was quick: within two years, on 30 August 1948, the priory was raised to the rank of abbey, making Maylis an independent monastery rather than a dependency of another house.

Where does the name Maylis come from?

One popular, though not firmly proven, explanation traces the name to Gascon words for "mother" and "lily," which would make Maylis mean something like "Mother of the Lily." That reading ties the name to the Marian litanies, where the Virgin is compared to a lily as a symbol of purity. Whatever its exact linguistic origin, the Marian cult has been the core identity of this hilltop for centuries, well before any monks lived there.

Who are the Olivetan Benedictines at Maylis?

The Olivetan congregation was founded in early 14th-century Tuscany by a Sienese nobleman, later canonized as Saint Bernardo Tolomei, together with two companions. The three chose to live under the Rule of Saint Benedict while forming a distinct branch of the Benedictine family, taking their name from their mother house, Monte Oliveto Maggiore near Siena. The community at Maylis is one of the French houses belonging to this Olivetan branch, distinguishing it from ordinary Benedictine or Cistercian abbeys elsewhere in the region.

What does daily life at the abbey look like today?

Beyond the liturgical prayer that structures each day, the monks of Maylis look after the Marian sanctuary and welcome pilgrims and retreat guests looking for silence. For decades, the community has also supported itself through craft production: the monks hand-pour candles using traditional methods and grow, dry and package an herbal infusion known as tisane de Maylis.

What is the story behind the famous Maylis herbal tea?

The tea's history starts in the early 1950s. An elderly local man came to Father Emmanuel and told him the abbey grounds held a hidden treasure: a medicinal plant growing wild there. A few years later, when a priest friend was suffering from painful kidney colic, Father Emmanuel prepared an infusion from that same plant. The pain subsided within hours, and word of the herb's effectiveness spread quickly through the area. Since then, tisane de Maylis, valued for its detoxifying and kidney-supporting properties, has become one of the abbey's best-known products and is now sold well beyond the Landes.

Frequently asked questions

Can visitors tour the abbey? Yes, the sanctuary and monastery church are open to visitors and pilgrims, who can also attend the offices celebrated by the monks.

Can you stay overnight at Maylis? In keeping with the Benedictine tradition of hospitality, the community welcomes guests seeking a quiet retreat, though it is best to arrange the details of a stay directly with the monastery beforehand.

What can you buy on site? The abbey shop sells its signature products: hand-poured candles and the herbal infusion tisane de Maylis.

Where exactly is the abbey located? Maylis sits in the Chalosse area of the Landes department, on a hilltop between the towns of Saint-Sever and Orthez.