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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Michel-de-Gast de Roquebillière, located in the Alpes-Maritimes, is a Catholic building whose first mention dates back to 1141, although an earlier church was mentioned in 568. The original village, destroyed by a collapse in 1564, housed this church, rebuilt between 1486 and 1533 under the supervision of Prior Monet Rogieri. Its Gothic style, rare in the area dominated by Romanesque or Baroque churches, makes it a remarkable monument. The date of 1533, engraved on a key vault, marks the completion of the work.

The building was given to the Hospitallers of the Order of St John of Jerusalem by the Bishop of Nice Peter I between 1115 and 1151. The latter kept it until 1779-1780. A survey of 1438 already indicated its state of disrepair, but reconstruction did not begin until the end of the 15th century. The damaged bell tower was repaired between 1659 and 1666. In the 19th century, a restoration campaign (1865-1868) added a clock offered by Napoleon III in 1909, considered disproportionate.

Ranked a historical monument in 1994, the church carries carved crosses of Malta, testimonies of its link with the Hospitallers. Its history is also marked by the successive collapses of the village, notably that of 1926, which permanently moved the village to the right bank of Vesubia. Today, it remains a symbol of the religious and architectural heritage of Upper Vesubia, mixing medieval influences and modern restorations.

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