In recent decades, much scholarly interest has been devoted to the abbey of Saint-Évroult-Notre-Dame-du-Bois, rescuing from oblivion its ruins which seemed to have been lost in the Pays d'Ouche. Before being subject to archaeological excavations carried out between 1998 and 1999, essentially, the majority of studies focused on the history of the abbey and its foundation. Much of this was concerned to record the accomplishments of its founding saint, Évroul. Chibnall's translation of Orderic's Historia ecclesiastica provides most of our knowledge on the history of the monastery. No detailed architectural survey was carried out until the mid-twentieth century, when the complex was recorded as a ‘Monument Historique’. Nevertheless, this research remained imprecise, since it concentrated only on the buildings still standing. The insight that V. Hincker brought to the analysis of the conventual buildings, which have long-since disappeared, is essential to our understanding of the organisation of the abbey and the life of its monks. The items found in the survey that he made of the chapter-house allow us not only to place the architecture of this building within a movement of Norman Gothic reconstruction, but also to understand the function of the room itself, which seems to have enjoyed a privileged role in the life of the community.

By the end of Hincker's research in 1999, two thirds of the chapterhouse remained unexamined. New excavations carried out in 2013 and 2014 have allowed us to answer some of the outstanding questions concerning the plan of this room. In order to better understand the interest and objectives of such an investigation, it is appropriate to revisit the origins of, and various modifications made to, the abbey. It will be necessary to evaluate existing research, before exploring the issues of the project and presenting the archaeological investigation itself.

The abbey of Saint-Évroul is found in the département of Orne in the municipality of Saint-Évroult-Notre-Dame-du-Bois, midway between towns of L’ Aigle and Gacé. At the heart of the Ouche forest and an important river network, the geographical environment was suitable for the foundation of a community. Orderic Vitalis is the principal historian of this abbey, and with just title, since he spent the greater part of his life there between the end of the eleventh century and beginning of the twelfth.