Abbaye de Bonne-Espérance

The Abbaye de Bonne-Espérance, just 4km/2.5mi south of Binche near the village of Vellereille-les-Brayeux, was founded in the 12th C. by Premonstatensian friars. Apart from its 15th C. Gothic tower however, the present church is largely 18th C., the work of Laurent Dewez.

Many visitors are drawn to the Abbaye by a reputedly miraculous statue of the smiling Madonna and Child (stone, 14th C.). The cloisters adjacent to the church also date principally from the 18th C., though one or two arches are survivals from the 13th C.