On 17 January 1871, four children from the village of Pontmain in northwestern France have seen an apparition of the Virgin Mary in the sky.

​

​This apparition occurred during the Franco-Prussian War. The German troops were close to Pontmain. The people in the village prayed for protection. On the evening of January 17 [1871], for several minutes Mary appeared in Heaven  [to Joseph and Eugene Barbedette, age 10 and 12, resp. Francoise Richer, age 11  Jeanne-Marie Lebosse', age 9] wearing a dark blue dress with a crucifix in her hands. Below the apparition appeared the words, 'Pray please. God will hear you soon. My son lets Himself be touched.' That same night an order from the German headquarters called the army back, and on January 28 the French-German armistice was signed. Pontmain remains a powerful example of the power of prayer to preserve us from disaster and war.



The following year the Bishop of Laval pronounced: 'We judge that the immaculate Virgin Mary, mother of God has veritably appeared, on January 17 1871, to Eugène Barbedette, Joseph Barbedette, Françoise Richer and Jeanne-Marie Lebossé, in the hamlet of Pontmain.'

A basilica was built in Pontmain between 1873 and 1877; it quickly became a destination for pilgrims from all over France.

 

 

At the small town of Pontmain, France on a cold winter evening, January 17, 1871, the Virgin Mary appeared to four children above a barn on the farm of the Barbadette family. Eugene, age 12, and his brother Joseph, age 10, were the first to see her in the sky. They described a beautiful lady in a dark blue dress covered with stars. She wore a black veil with a golden crown on her head. Two little girls, Francoise Richer, age 11, and Jeanne Marie LeBosse, age 9, also saw her in the sky. Almost all the village was there that night. It was war time and the invading Prussians were near.
The village people, strong in their faith, had been praying for a miracle to save them from the enemy. Our Lady appeared over a nearby barn.  A written message appeared on a large white banner which unrolled beneath the feet of Our Lady. A message was given to the people that God had heard their prayers and that He would answer their needs shortly. The single apparition lasted three hours. Within eleven days, Prussia had mysteriously withdrawn its troops. An Armistice was signed and the war was over - Pontmain and France had been spared.

This is commemorated in the barn as shown at the right.
Within a year, the Bishop of Laval Diocese, Bishop Wicart, authorized devotion at the site. Today the Basilica of Our Lady of Hope welcomes the 200,000 pilgrims that come here to ask for her intercession.
You can visit both the barn (groups can say Mass there) as well as the magnificent Basilica which was built later. 

The Basilica and the barn are open daily.  The Basilica is very impressive and its large size reflects the popularity of the Shrine.  It stands in stark contrast to the barn, which has retained its simplicity.

On the occasions we have visited you can just walk in the barn--there do not seem to be any attendants or anyone in particular in charge. 

There are a few gift shops in Pontmain selling various statues, books, etc related to the apparitions. Pontmain is not far from Mont St. Michel, the D-Day beaches and other attractions of this part of Normandy.

There is not train service to Pontmain, the nearest station is in Laval, about 30 miles away.  From there you can take a taxi to the Shrine, there is no bus service. 

Click here for the official website of Our Lady of Pontmain, France. 

​http://www.sanctuaire-pontmain.com/?lang=en

​

You can find details about Masses and other events.  There is an English-language option on the site.  There is also a video on the site showing the story of the apparitions; however, it is in French so unless you speak French you may not get much out of it.

 

 

 

 

History

During the war with Germany, things were not going well for France. The Germans marched to Laval. All the people were suffering from the effects of ill-advised advice taken by Napoleon III.
On 19 July 1870, Emperor Napoleon III of the second Empire declared war against Prussia. From the first days of the war, defeat followed defeat. On 1 September 1870, the Emperor, together with 80,000 French soldiers were imprisoned. It was for this reason that men and boys, with no previous military training, were drafted to the army. They all came from the scarcely five-hundred inhabitants of Pont-Main, France. Before the draftees left, they all went to Confession, heard Mass, and received Holy Communion. Father Guerin blessed them and consecrated them all to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
On 17 January 1871, Paris was besieged. Two-thirds of the country was in the power of the Germans. The battle of Le Mans had laid Mayenne and Brittany open to the invaders. In this time of dire trouble, prayer rose from different parts of France as from one heart and from one voice, most earnestly near the spot where the invaders' next attack was expected. This spot was Laval, chief town of Mayenne.
The German army was advancing towards the west of France. On the 12th January, 1871 it entered Le Mans. By Tuesday, the 17th, it had reached the gates of Laval. There were a huge number of deserters. They were deaf to the voice of the officers. Two of them were executed, but this example had no effect on the others, wrote Admiral Jaureguiberry, the officer in the command of this sector.
It was snowing. Night and day wagons passed through Laval from east to west. All day long the wounded were being set down. They needed care. In the countryside farmers were hiding their possessions - money, corn, wine and linen.
Everything was going wrong. An outbreak of typhoid had been declared. Smallpox was spreading. At Laval, people were being vaccinated. Some commentators wrote that even the elements seemed disturbed. On the 11th of January an Aurora Borealis made a deep impression on many. Some saw in it the masts of a phantom ship; others, on the steeples of the cathedral.
By the 17th January, 1871, the Prussians were just across the river from Laval, which is the City next to Mayenne. About half past twelve, there was an earthquake in Pont-Main. Fear was widespread. "No use praying. God doesn't hear us", they were saying in Pont-Main.
Then it was that Pont-Main, a hamlet of some five-hundred inhabitants, was to become forever memorable, because of the heavenly favour vouchsafed that night. Even its geographical position on the borderland between Brittany and Mayenne was to assume historical importance. Seen by the light of the celestial drama about to be enacted above it, it was to appear as a sentinel guarding Brittany.



Site of the Apparition

At Pont-Main, though the roars of cannons could be heard, the Barbedette family was busy with their household chores before supper. The Barbedette were one of the oldest family of the region and also one of the most devout. The Mass, Rosary, and other prayers featured prominently in their daily activities. That night Caesar Barbedette and his two sons - Eugene, 12, and Joseph, 10, were at work in the horse stable, where they regularly slept. Jeanette Detais visited them for some neighbourly talk. Bored by adult conversation, when Eugene went to the barn door to check the weather, his eyes gazed across the evening sky and he noticed an unusual sight at the roof of Augustine Guidecog's house, some seventy feet away from him. The stars seemed to melt away and suddenly about five feet above the roof, there appeared a beautiful Lady.































​

The Pontmain Story

At the time of the apparition Pontmain was a small village, inhabited by simple and hardworking country folk, who were guided by their parish priest Abbé Michel Guérin.  The Barbadette family consisted of father César, his wife, Victoire, with their two sons Joseph and Eùgene, aged ten and twelve, and another older boy who was away in the army. [At 6 am, the Prussians were closing in on Laval, the capital of the region in which tiny Pontmain was situated. Eugene was worried about the threat but he was more worried about his older brother Auguste who was one of those called to battle. Despite knowing that Prussian General Schmidt and his troops were getting closer, Abbe Guerin offered prayers of hope at mass that morning: “Let us add penance to our prayers and then we may take courage.  God will have pity on us; His mercy will surely come to us through Mary.”] On the evening of [Tuesday] 17 January 1871, the two boys were helping their father in the barn when the eldest, Eùgene, walked over towards the door to look out.

As he gazed at the star studded sky he noticed one area practically free of stars above a neighbouring house. Suddenly he saw an apparition of a [tall] beautiful woman smiling at him [standing in the air about 20 feet from the roof of the barn]; she was wearing a blue gown covered with golden stars, and a black veil under a golden crown. [She looked at the boy and smiled.]

His father, brother, and a neighbour came out to look and Joseph immediately said he too could see the apparition [“I see a beautiful tall Lady”] although the adults saw nothing. The mother, Victoire, came out but she too could see nothing, although she was puzzled because her boys were usually very truthful. She suggested that it might be the Blessed Virgin, and that they should all say five Our Fathers and five Hail Marys in her honour.

As it was now about a quarter past six, and time for supper, the boys were ordered inside but soon after allowed to go outside again. The Lady was still there and so the local schoolteacher, Sister Vitaline, was sent for. She couldn't see the Lady, and so she went to fetch three young children from the school to see their reactions. Immediately they arrived the two older children, two girls aged nine and eleven, expressed their delight at the apparition, describing it as the boys had done, although the youngest child saw nothing. [Joseph was beside himself clapping his hands and shouting out “Oh how beautiful She is how beautiful!”]

The adults in the crowd, which had now grown to about sixty people including the priest, could still see nothing and began to say the rosary, as the children exclaimed that something new was happening. A blue oval frame with four candles, two at the level of the shoulders and two at the knees, was being formed around the Lady, and a short red cross had appeared over her heart. As the rosary progressed the figure and its frame grew larger, until it was twice life size; the stars around her began to multiply and attach themselves to her dress until it was covered with them.

As the Magnificat was being said the four children cried out, “Something else is happening.” A broad streamer on which letters were appearing unrolled beneath the feet of the Lady, so that eventually the phrase, “But pray, my children,” could be read. Fr. Guérin then ordered that the Litany of Our Lady should be sung, and as this progressed new letters appeared, making the message, “God will soon answer you.” As they continued to sing, another message was formed, one that removed any doubt that it was the Blessed Virgin who was appearing to the children; “My Son allows Himself to be moved.”

The children were beside themselves with joy at the beauty of the Lady and her smile, but her expression then changed to one of extreme sadness, as she now contemplated a large red cross that had suddenly appeared before her, with a figure of Jesus on it in an even darker shade of red. One of the stars then lit the four candles that surrounded the figure, as the crucifix vanished and the group began night prayers. As these were being recited, the children reported that a white veil was rising from the Lady's feet and gradually blotting her out, until finally, at about nine o'clock, the apparition was over. [The vision lasted about 2 hours]

[The Pontmain villagers learned the next morning that while the apparition was going on, General Schmidt received an order to pull back from Laval when they were preparing to enter it.  Some Prussian soldiers also claimed seeing a vision near the border of the region and they said, “A Madonna is guarding the country and forbidding us to advance.”]

The following March a canonical inquiry into the apparition was held, and in May the local bishop questioned the children, the inquiry being continued later in the year with further questioning by theologians and a medical examination. The bishop was satisfied by these investigations, and in February 1872 declared his belief that it was the Blessed Virgin who had appeared to the children.

Joseph Barbadette became a priest, a member of the Congregation of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, while his brother Eùgene became a secular priest. He was assisted by one of the girls who had seen Mary as his housekeeper, with the other, Jeanne-Marie Lebossé, becoming a nun. A large basilica was built at Pontmain and consecrated in 1900. 



The Description of the Lady

The Lady as described by Eugene was dressed in a flowing robe of deep radiant blue studded with gold stars. The sleeves were full, extending up to the hands. She was wearing blue slippers, tied with golden ribbon in the shape of a rosette. Her hair was completely covered with black veil thrown over her shoulders reaching down to the level of her elbow. On her head a gold crown rose slightly to a peak. It had no ornament in front except a red band circling the centre. Her hands were extended - "like the Miraculous Medal", but without the rays of light.



Apparition as seen by Eugene and Joseph

The Lady was smiling at Eugene. And as he heard Jeanette coming, he pointed to the sky for her to see the heavenly spectacle. But she saw nothing. Their voices had attracted Caesar Barbedette and his other son Joseph. When they came outside, the father also saw nothing but Joseph saw the Lady as his brother saw it. Their mother was called and saw nothing too. By now the neighbours became aware of the commotion and so the father and the mother tried to distract the attention of the boys but to no avail.



Apparition as seen by Frances, Jeanne Marie, Eugene Friteau and the Baby, Augustine

They then decided to call the two sisters of the village school, Sister Vitaline and Sister Marie Edward. Sister Vitaline came and she too saw nothing of the heavenly vision. She then sent three children - Frances Richer, 11, Jeanne Marie Lebosse, 9, and a third child. Both girls saw the smiling beautiful Lady, the third child could not. Sister Vitaline then came with Sister Marie Edward who in turn fetched Father Guerin. They all saw nothing of the apparition which the children were describing to them. Another child by the name of Eugene Friteau, six and half, also saw the Lady, sickly as he was. A neighbour, Madame Boitin, with her two-year old, Augustine, joined the crowd which had now gathered together by the barn. The baby in her childish way reached out with her little arms towards the Apparition and showed signs of joy.



The Message

From time to time the Lady would look sad because of some haughty and rowdy people in the crowd, but she would smile back especially with the prayers and hymns, the Rosary and Marian songs of the people led by Father Guerin and the two sisters. As the congregation was reciting the Rosary, stars gathered two by two, below the Lady's feet as if representing the Hail Marys of the Rosary. Then a white banner, about a yard wide, unrolled beneath the Lady's feet, thus, forming a perfect rectangle. Here she spelled her message:
"OH ! DO PRAY MY CHILDREN, GOD WILL ANSWER YOU VERY SOON. MY SON ALLOWS HIMSELF TO BE MOVED"
"MAIS PRIEZ MES ENFANTS, DIEU VOUS EXAUCERA EN PEU DE TEMPS. MON FILS SE LAISSE TOUCHER"(in French)
"My Son allows Himself to be moved" is an incorrect translation of the French which read: "Mon fils se laisse ...." This is very significant because only the children could see the letters as they unfolded. When, all together, they spelled the word "laisse". The nun school teacher who was present corrected the children and said: "There has no 'i'. ( 'Se laisse' alone would translated 'My Son allows himself', make no sense "se lasse" : this is translated to: "My Son grows weary" . But they (who saw the message) said "no", and repeated the word "laisse". "There is a 'i'" they said.



The end of Apparition

After some time, she raised her hands to the height of her shoulder, arms out and bent slightly backwards and elbows close to her body. Then a large red cross appeared in the hands of the Blessed Virgin. The figure of the crucified Christ was a darker red hue but no blood was flowing from the wounds. The community prayed their night prayers together. A large white veil began to cover the figure of the Virgin, slowly rising to her face and then she gave her last smile to the children. As the night prayers came to a close, the apparition ended. It was about nine o'clock. The Apparition ended after lasting about three hours.



The Miracle after the Apparition

In the meantime, late that night of the 17th January, General Von Schmidt of the Prussian Army who was about to run over Laval towards Pont-Main, received orders from his Commander not to take the city. The invasion of the Catholic West never came off. On 23 January 1871, the long-hoped for Armistice was signed. The promise, "God will soon grant your request", of Our Lady of Hope had been fulfilled. Soon all the thirty-eight conscripted men and boys returned home unscathed.
On the evening of the ever-memorable 17 January 1871, the Commander of the Prussian forces, having taken up his quarters at the archiepiscopal palace of Le Mans, told Msgr. Fillion, Bishop of that diocese: "By this time my troops are at Laval".
On the same evening, the Prussian troops in sight of Laval stopped at half-past five o'clock, about the time when the Apparition first appeared above Pont-Main, a few miles off. General Schmidt is reported to have said on the morning of the 18th: "We cannot go farther. Yonder, in the direction of Brittany, there is an invisible 'Madonna' barring the way."
 



Authorization of the Our Lady of Hope

This sudden and inexplicable stopping of the German forces in sight of Laval, and their equally inexplicable retirement the following morning, meant, together with the saving of Brittany, the turning back of the tide of conquering soldiery from that part of France. The war was practically at an end. Twelve days later the armistice was signed at Versailles. After that the devotion to the Blessed Virgin under the title of that of Notre Dame d' Esperance de Pont-Main, Our Lady of Hope of Pont-Main, was authorized by the ecclesiastical authorities, and the confraternity of that name has been extended all over the world. Signal favors, both spiritual and temporal, have been granted by heaven through it.



Official church recognition and approval

After the apparition of Our Lady of Hope on January 17, 1871, pilgrims made up of both the clergy and the laity came to Pont-Main. At the same time, inquiries and investigations were made about the apparition; the visionary children were submitted to various intense interrogations.
Finally, on the Feast of the Purification, February 2, 1872, Msgr. Wicart, Bishop of Laval, issued a pastoral letter giving a canonical judgment on the apparition.
Thus, the veneration of Our Lady of Hope of Pont-Main was given official Church recognition and approval.
Pope Pius XI gave a final decision regarding the mass and office in honor of Our Lady of Hope of Pont-Main.
A final papal honor was given to Our Lady of Hope on July 16, 1932 by Cardinal Pacelli, who later became Pope Pius XII, by passing a decree from the Chapter of St. Peter's Basilica that the statue of the Blessed Lady, Mother of Hope, be solemnly honored with the crown of gold. The Lady then was crowned in the presence of archbishop, bishops, priests and the laity by Cardinal Verdier, Archbishop of Paris. The coronation took place on July 24, 1934.