A vast estate of around 3 hectares at the time, theAbbey of Les Fossés was founded in 639. It became one of Île-de-France's most renowned religious centers in the Middle Ages. Pilgrims from all over Île-de-France came to be cured of gout, epilepsy and leg ailments by the relics of Saint Maur. As the buildings fell into disrepair in the mid-17th century, a succession of successive owners shared the fragmented remains of the abbey until 1950. A municipal square was laid out in 1935, and a historic park was opened to the public in 1982. REMPART volunteer workcamps to save and restore the remains were carried out from 1973 to 1989.

Listed as a Monument Historique in 1988, some of the abbey's remains and buildings are preserved in the park (the restored layout of the abbey church and cloister garden, a Gothic pillar from the abbey church, the tower and some 14th-century surrounding walls), as well as in the historic area closed to the public (a Romanesque wall from the cellar, the abbey's underground passages, the 12th- and 14th-century Notre-Dame-des-Miracles chapel, a late 19th-century neo-Renaissance villa, and an early 20th-century well and cloister gallery), where week-end and teenage work camps are organized in conjunction with the Saint-Maur-des-Fossés youth department.

This week-end will be an opportunity to maintain the overgrown land and carry out some minor work on the buildings left in ruins.

The workcamp is open to everyone aged 11 and over.
Parental authorization required for minors not accompanied by their legal guardians.

Volunteers can sign up for one or more days (9:30am-5pm with lunch break from 12:30pm to 2pm) or half-days (9:30am-12:30pm or 2pm-5pm).
Please specify your choice when you pre-register.

Volunteers should wear footwear and clothing suitable for manual activities and the day's weather. We recommend wearing safety shoes or hiking boots, pants and a long- or short-sleeved T-shirt.

A tour of the site and its remains will be offered before work begins.