Montebourg Abbey was probably established by William the Conqueror after the invasion to England (1066). The exact date is unknown, but it was before William's death in 1087. The abbey got lot of donations from the Dukes of Normandy and Kings of England until the 1180s. It had a large land property even in the southern England and the abbey grew up quickly in the 12th century.
The abbey suffered damages in the Hundred Years' War, but it was renovated in the mid-15th century. In 1562 Huguenots looted the abbey during the Frencg Wars of Religion. The first school in Montebourg was established in 1585 and in the 18th century it was used as Catholic poor house and rest home. But soon after the Great Revolution caused the decline of Montebourg Abbey. It was reduced to the state and monastic buildings were partially demolished. In 1842, the Vicar General of Coutances acquired what was by then only an enclosure of ruins, and set it up for the Brothers of Mercy, which he had just formed in order to promote Catholic education in the countryside. From there, the brothers have continued their work.
References:The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.