Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Our Lady of the Assumption of Saint Savin, located in the Hautes-Pyrénées, has its origins in the 10th century, built on the ruins of a Gallo-Roman Palatium Æmilianum cited by Charlemagne. This Benedictine monastery, linked to the order of Saint-Victor of Marseilles as early as 1080, became a religious pillar of the country of Bigorre, controlling a territory of eight villages (including Saint-Savin, Castet and Soulom) thanks to the donations of Count Raymond I in 945. Its church, of Benedictine plan in Latin cross, was rebuilt in the 11th-XIIth centuries to house the tomb of Saint Savin, a local hermit of the 8th century.

The power of the abbey declined from the 16th century, undermined by the wars of Religion, earthquakes (notably those of 1660 and 1754) and commende. In 1791 the abbey church, spared sale as a national property, replaced the former parish church of St John. Saved in extremis by Prosper Mérimée in 1855 after the collapse of its vault in 1854, it was classified as a Historic Monument in 1840. Its 14th century octagonal bell tower, carved capitals (heads of animals, birds) and its "clot window" bear witness to its medieval heritage.

The abbey was also a political issue: in 1130 a duel opposed his abbot to the inhabitants of the Val d'Azun for a burial, and Queen Marguerite took refuge in the floods of Cauterets. The excavations of the 18th century revealed celtiberian and Roman remains, confirming its ancient occupation. Today, the abbey, a communal property, preserves its classified terraces (1956) and frescoes, despite the destruction suffered (Normand pillage in 841, earthquakes, wars).

External links