Abbey of Saint Victor

The abbey was founded in the 5th century by John Cassian near the tombs of martyrs, including Victor of Marseille, who gave the complex its name. John Cassian was commissioned in 416 by Bishop Proculus of Marseille to establish a monastery on the southern bank of the Lacydon, the Old Port. The area had previously been a Roman quarry, whose grotto later became a Christian necropolis and formed the core of the monastery. From 750 to 960, Saint-Victor served as the residence of the Bishops of Marseille. Charlemagne, and subsequently Louis the Pious and Lothair I, confirmed privileges such as salt rights and port fees. After destruction by Saracen raids in the late 9th or early 10th century, the abbey was rebuilt under Bishop Honorat II and his relative Pons I. Under Abbot Isarn, who served from 1020 to 1047, the monastery was consecrated by Pope Benedict IX in 1040.