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The Shrine of Notre-Dame de Montligeon was founded in the last century by Fr. Paul Buguet (1843-1918). CENTENARY
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In order to provide work for his parishioners, Fr. Paul Buguet made himself a printer and a carrier of earth and stones. To light up the path from earth to heaven, he became both a missionary and a builder. Two works born, one from social concern, the other from a mystical aspect, thus developed in parallel.
Born at Bellavilliers (Orne) on 25 March, 1843, Paul-Joseph Buguet made his first Communion in 1855 in the church of Notre-Dame de Mortagne. He studied at the college of Saint-Eloi , then from 1862 at the major Seminary of Sées. Studies and prayer were going to be, moreover, the twin poles of his life. On 26 May, 1866, he was ordained priest by the bishop of Sées, and his first appointment was as curate to Ste-Honorine-la-Chardonne (1866-1872), before being appointed parish priest at Saires-la-Verrerie (1872-1878).
A man of action,
he launched a girls’ youth group, had a new presbytery built and brought
back the local people to Mass…
At the age of 35, Fr. Paul Buguet was appointed to La Chapelle-Montligeon,
a little village at the foot of the forest of Réno-Valdieu, on the
side of a hill. The village church was poor; the grey houses, too, hardly
conveyed the impression of wealth. The population comprised a few farmers
and tradesmen, but especially wood-cutters, carpenters and clog-makers, and
numbered then 770 : dwindling by 300 souls within fifty years. Many had left
to seek work in town.
Still just as
active, he restored the parish, then the wash-house, had a fountain built
in the square to provide drinking water for the village and planned to create
a tram line… However, two years before arriving in La Chapelle-Montligeon,
Fr. Buguet had been deeply affected by three deaths in his family. On the
evening of 1st November 1876, his brother August had been crushed to death
by a falling bell at the church of Our Lady of Mortagne. “And what about
his soul?” exclaimed the young priest. This tragic accident was followed
by the deaths of two of his nieces, aged 12 and 16.”One consequence that
can be drawn from my meditations, is the necessity to relieve the souls in
Purgatory. I have delayed too long in organising the Work that I had planned.
I must work to deliver these souls”, noted Fr. Buguet in his Diary a
few months later. The idea of creating a work for the “the deliverance
of the neglected souls in Purgatory” germinated in his mind. It would
become a reality at La Chapelle-Montligeon.
One of the cares that haunted him from that time was to pray and have others
pray for all the dead, especially for “those for whom no one prays”.
After several attempts, in 1884 Fr. Buguet obtained approval of the statutes
of the Association for the deliverance of the souls in Purgatory. He became
then, as he himself says, the “commercial traveller for my souls in Purgatory”,
begging from parish to parish to build up his Work.
In 1887, he launched himself into another venture : “I was seeking to reconcile this double goal: to have people pray for the neglected souls, and, in return, to obtain through them the means by which the worker could make a living.” For that purpose, he decided to create a printing works in order to publish the magazines of the Work. He began in a little room in the presbytery, with the help of a clog-maker who offered his services for printing. That is the way the printing functioned for two years. But the increasing number of magazines meant he had to have sheds built in the yard and buy old houses in order to lodge the workers and interpreters. In fact, orders were coming from all parts of Europe and had to be translated from English, German or Flemish…
In 1894, the printing works abandoned the sheds and old houses and moved into new premises : it became “Société anonyme des établissements de la Chapelle-Montligeon”, a legally registered entity. At this time it had 31 workers. In 1887, after the first pilgrimage, organised to pray for “the holy souls”, pilgrims began to flood in from all over France and from abroad. The fame of Our Lady of Montligeon began to spread across the world.
In the thirtieth edition of the Bulletin of the Work, in June 1890, can be read “We would like to raise up at Montligeon a chapel worthy of our great and beautiful Work where requests from the whole universe will be united every day, rising together to God.” In response to the wishes of Fr. Buguet, gifts very quickly began to flow in, so that, on 22 September 1894, the first spadeful of soil was turned. In parallel with this, Fr. Buguet began his great journeys, always as a missionary for the souls in Purgatory : to Rome (1893) where he was encouraged by Pope Leo XIII, Western Europe (1895), the United States (1897), Germany and Central Europe (1898), Spain (1899). He travelled and travelled.
On 4th June 1896, the foundation stone of the future basilica of Our Lady of Montligeon was blessed. In that same year, Fr. Buguet left the presbytery and came to live with his collaborators in a huge building at the top of the esplanade: the Chaplains’ House. In May, 1905, the Chancel and main aisle of the basilica were finished and the first Mass took place on 1st June, 1911 during the annual pilgrimage.
Unfortunately, the building work was interrupted in 1916, because of the war. That same year, Fr. Buguet celebrated the golden anniversary of his priestly ordination. Two years later, on 14 June 1918, worn out, he died in Rome. His body was brought back to Montligeon and rests under the Basilica.
25 March
1843 – BORN AT BELLAVILLIERS (In the canton of Pervenchères,
district of Mortagne), son of Jean-Michel Buguet, a clog-maker, and of Marguerite
Bellanger, a spinner.
26 March 1843 – Baptism of Paul-Joseph Buguet.
1850 – The Buguet family goes to live in rue Croix-Chemin at Mortagne.
7 June 1855 – PAUL BUGUET’S FIRST COMMUNION in the church of
Notre-Dame de Mortagne.
October 1855 – Enters the college of Sainte-Marie (or Saint-Êloi)
at Mortagne.
October 1862 – Enters the Major Seminary of Séez.
10 June 1865 – Ordained Deacon.
26 May 1866 – ORDAINED PRIEST by Mgr Rousselet; he is appointed as
curate to Sainte-Honorine-la-Chardonne (Athis deanery).
2 June 1871
– the Brothers come to the school at Sainte-Honorine after many attempts
by Fr. Buguet.
June-July 1871 – Collection in the Département of l’Orne
to pay the teaching Brothers.
4 July 1872 – Appointed curate-administrator of Saires-la-Verrerie
(Briouze deanery).
7 September 1874 – Appointed Parish Priest of Saires-la-Verrerie.
1875 – Laying of the foundation stone of the presbytery, built by
Fr. Buguet with the help of subscriptions.
1st November 1876 - Death of Auguste Buguet, his brother, crushed by a
falling bell at Mortagne.
29 June 1877 – Death of Pauline Buguet, his niece, at the age of
16.
26 July 1877 – Death of Marthe Buguet, his other niece, aged 12.
20 July 1878 – Appointed Parish Priest of La Chapelle-Montligeon.
1st August
1878 – ARRIVAL AT LA CHAPELLE-MONTLIGEON.
Easter 1880 – Establishment at La Chapelle-Montligeon of the Association
of St. Francis de Sales and that of the Propagation of the Faith; the setting
up of a Catholic Committee attached to the “Work of Catholic Workers
Societies” of Albert de Mun.
1880 – Fitting of benches in the parish church.
7 November 1880 – Blessing of the great bell of the parish church,
paid for by subscription.
From 1880 to 1884 – Attempts to provide work for the women of Montligeon
(making jerseys, lace, gloves ).
May 1884 – Visit of the “Lady with the white veil”.
3 September 1884 – Mgr. Trégaro, Bishop of Séez, accepts,
in principal, the plan for the Statutes of the Expiatory Work.
24 September 1884 – Fr. Buguet requests official approval from Mgr.
Trégaro.
4 October 1884 – Journey to Séez to renew his demand.
5 October 1884 – Mgr. Trégaro sends Fr. Buguet the Statutes
of the Work, together with his approval and the episcopal seal.
End of 1884 – The “commercial traveller for the souls in Purgatory”
starts collecting for his Work.
2 July 1885 – The Confraternity of the Holy Rosary is established
at La Chapelle-Montligeon.
1885 – During the year the first two Bulletins of the Work appear
(first 8 then 12 pages) and are printed at Séez.
February 1886 – The Bulletin becomes a quarterly and the number of
pages increases.
1886 – Purchase of a Paul Abat printing press to print some propaganda
leaflets : the start of the printing works, set up in the presbytery.
5 April 1887 - Institution of an Administrative Committee for the Expiatory
Work.
24 May 1887 – First Solemn Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Montligeon,
in the parish church.
1887 – Purchase of some old houses to contain workshops for embossing,
type-setting and book-binding.
End of 1887 – Purchase of a large printing press and a steam-powered
machine.
24 May 1888 – Second Pilgrimage, on the church square.
Autumn 1888 – Some Religious from Sainte-Marie de Tinchebray become
Fr. Buguet’s collaborators. The Sisters of Longny come to direct the
Secretariat and the women’s workshops.
May 1889 – The Bulletin becomes a monthly and is printed at Montligeon.
In total, Fr. Buguet employs about 15 people.
1889 – Creation of a public Society with responsibility for managing
the assets of the Work.
January 1890 – Publication of the first “Almanac of Hope”.
June 1890 – Through the Bulletin an initial appeal is launched for
the construction of a church.
1891 – The site of the future church is decided and the land is purchased.
May 1891 – The 5th Pilgrimage takes place on the site of the future
church.
July 1891 – Creation of the Band of the Expiatory Work.
August 1891 – Fr. Buguet announces that a statue of Our Lady of Deliverance,
especially destined for Montligeon, has been made by Steüer.
End of 1891 – Start of Fr. Buguet’s long journies across France
and Europe.
19 November 1891 – Fr. Buguet suggests to the municipal Council that
the old parish church should be exchanged for a new one, which he would build
at his own expense, the plans and costs of which have already been determined.
18 May 1893 – Mgr. Trégaro appoints Fr. Buguet HONORARY CANON
of his cathedral.
4 October 1893 – Pope Leo XIII establishes the Association of Our
Lady of Montligeon as an ARCHCONFRATERNITY.
31 October 1893 – A College of Chaplains of the Work is set up by
Mgr. Trégaro.
20 November 1893 – Canon Buguet is received in private audience by
the Holy Father.
November 1893 – Cardinal PAROCHI becomes cardinal-protector of the
Expiatory Work.
Beginning of 1894 – The altar of the Expiatory Work is erected as
a privileged altar.
1894 – Canon Buguet crosses the Atlantic and travels through the
United States and Canada.
June 1894 – A new plan for the church, more important than that
of 1891, is drawn up.
1894 – The printing works is established in new premises on the great
square.
22 September 1894 – START OF WORK on the new church and digging of
the foundations.
24 November 1894 – Constitution of the legally registered “Société
Anonyme des Établissements de La Chapelle-Montligeon” to administer
the printing works which now employed 31 workers.
May 1895 – The Compagnie de l’Ouest puts on an extra train for
the annual pilgrimage.
19 June 1895 – A Pontifical Brief establishes the Archconfraternity
of Our Lady of Montligeon PRIMA-PRIMARIA.
1896 – The chaplains and the offices of the Work move into the Management
building.
4 June 1896 – 10th Pilgrimage and the blessing of the foundation
stone of the new church.
June 1898 – A Procurator for the Work is established in Via Nomentana,
Rome.
1898 – Construction of the interpreters’ house.
1899 – The Expiatory Work is given a chapel in the Roman Basilica
of Santa Maria in Monte Santo.
1900 – The Roman Procurator of the Expiatory Work moves near the
Santa Maria basilica.
8 February 1902 – Canon Buguet is appointed a Papal Prelate.
30 August 1903 – SILVER JUBILEE of Mgr. Buguet, as Parish Priest
of La Chapelle-Montligeon.
Autumn 1903 – A roof is put on the new church.
13 June 1904 – The Pope appoints Mgr. Buguet PRONOTARY APOSTOLIC.
End of 1904 – The major work of the church is completed. All that
remains is to erect the façade and the church towers.
23 October
1910 – In a “Motu Proprio”, Pope Pius X places the Expiatory
Work under the special protection of himself and his successors, and grants
to it the use of the basilica of Santa Maria in Monte Santo, Rome.
31 May 1911 – Blessing of the new church.
1st June 1911 – 25th Pilgrimage : Mass is celebrated in the finished
church.
June 1913 – The monumental staircase is completed.
28 October 1913 – The seat of the Archconfraternity is transferred
from the parish church to the new church.
8 June 1916 – GOLDEN JUBILEE OF PRIESTHOOD of Mgr. Buguet.
September 1917 – Mgr. Buguet leaves for Rome, on account of his health.
1917 – The stained-glass windows of the sanctuary are put in place.
14 June 1918 – MGR. BUGUET PASSES AWAY IN ROME.
17 June 1918 – Funeral of Mgr. Buguet in the Basilica of Santa Maria
in Monte Santo, Rome.
1919 – Erection of the Statue of Our Lady of Montligeon, the work
of Tadolini.
16 November 1921 – On the feast of Our Lady, the Liberator, Mgr.
Buguet is interred in the vault prepared in the Crypt of the new church.
