Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The former major seminary Saint-Serge, located in Angers in the eponymous district, finds its origins in the medieval abbey Saint-Serge, founded in the thirteenth century. The Abbey, which became a parish church after the Revolution, was completed by successive constructions, including a 17th-century cloister and refectory at 18th-century woodwork. The Revolution transformed the site into a repository of works of art and then a dispensary, before it hosted the major seminary from 1808 to 1906. The architect Charles Joly-Leterme erected between 1865 and 1870 a neo-Gothic chapel in tuffeau, consistent with the Angelvin style, as well as a wing dedicated to the formation of seminarians.

In 1913, a secondary school for girls opened in Angers to meet Republican expectations for female education. This course, which became College of Girls in 1929, settled in the old abbey, bought and restored by the city. A new wing, now destroyed, was built to accommodate the 250 students. The college was renamed Joachim-du-Bellay in 1934, in tribute to the 16th century poet, before becoming a mixed high school after 1968, marking his evolution towards a secular and modern institution.

During the Second World War, the high school was requisitioned by Nazi troops (1940–1943), forcing students to take refuge in the Normal School of Boys. In 1943, the Gestapo arrested six staff members — including Director Marie Talet and Professor Martha Mourbel — for anti-German spirit. Deported to Ravensbrück, three died there. Their memory has since been honoured, notably through testimonies such as that of Lucienne Simier, a survivor who wrote Two years at Ravensbrück's bagne.

After the war, the school became a European institution (binational Abibac sections and English European class) and artistic (theatrical options, music, plastic arts). He perpetuates traditions such as Rock in Joach (annual concert) or Joach also (transdisciplinary workshops). Its ranking among the lycées of the Pays de la Loire reflects its historical and pedagogical anchor, between religious heritage and educational commitment.

The architectural complex, partially classified as a historical monument (abbatial in 1840, seminary in 2000), illustrates the transition from a place of worship to a teaching space. Architects Joly-Leterme and Charles Roques left a neo-Gothic imprint there, while figures like Joseph Wresinski (born in 1917) or Roselyne Bachelot (former student) marked social and political history there.

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