Monastère Royal de Brou
The Royal Monastery of Brou is one of the finest examples of Flamboyant Gothic architecture in all of France, yet it draws a fraction of the crowds of better-known cathedrals. Built between 1506 and 1536 by Margaret of Austria to honour her late husband Philibert le Beau, it is a monument to grief transformed into breathtaking beauty.
The Church & Its Tombs
Step inside and the rood screen alone will stop you in your tracks — an intricate stone lacework that divides the nave with almost impossible delicacy. The choir stalls are carved from oak with 74 individual misericords, each one a miniature world of saints, monsters and everyday medieval life.
Three alabaster tombs occupy the choir, including Margaret's own, carved with such realism that the folds of her stone gown seem to shift in the candlelight. Art historians rank them among the greatest funerary sculptures of the Renaissance.
The Cloisters & Museum
Beyond the church, three interconnected cloisters offer a rare moment of quiet contemplation, their arcades framing manicured lawns and a medieval herb garden. The upper gallery houses the Musée de Brou, whose collection spans Flemish primitives to 20th-century works by artists with ties to the Ain region.
Don't miss the temporary exhibition rooms in the monks' former dormitory — the programming consistently punches above what you'd expect from a provincial museum.
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