Mont-Saint-Michel

Mont-Saint-Michel at sunset, August 2025.

In his book about the great cathedrals at Mont-Saint-Michel and Chartres, Henry Adams wrote that “[t]he great cathedral after 1200 show economy, and sometimes worse.” He may not have meant it as a condemnation, but his next line sharpens the point: “The world grew cheap, as worlds must.” I doubt the modern mega church would have altered his view, although he could hardly have known then how much worse was possible.

Nonetheless, if his point was that it was all downhill after Mont-Saint-Michel, I’ve seen little to disagree.