Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The former sub-prefecture of Clermont, located on rue Georges-Fleury, occupies the buildings of the former convent of Trinitaries, founded in the 13th century on the site of a medieval God-hotel. The order of the Trinitarians, created in 1198 by Saint John of Matha for the redemption of the captives, settled in Clermont thanks to a donation from Alphonse de Portugal, Count of Boulogne, in 1244. The convent, endowed with seigneurial rights and various income (semes, royal gifts), housed a parish church, Saint Andrew, and convent buildings rebuilt in 1549 after fires.

The French Revolution ended the activity of the Trinitarians in 1791: their property was seized, the church demolished in 1793, and its decorative elements (glasses, organs) sold. The remaining buildings, occupied by the district and then the municipality, became the sub-prefecture in the 19th century. The façade and turret, remains of the 16th century, were inscribed in historical monuments on May 30, 1927. The site preserves traces of the cloister, vaulted cellars and a turret, testimonies of its religious past.

The church of St. Andrew, described in 1768 by Mayor Chrestien of Beaumini, presented a nave without low side, a choir decorated with statues (saint John of Matha, St.Andre) and chapels dedicated to the Virgin or Saint Roch. The convent, a centre of charity and parish life, also welcomed church or lay residents. After the Revolution, the buildings were renovated for administrative use, continuing until today as a sub-prefecture, despite a temporary suppression in 1926.

The fief de Saint-André, on which the convent rose, extended between the present rue de Paris and the impasse of the sub-prefecture. The Trinitarians owned vineyards, gardens and seigneurial rights (such as a royalty on the butchers of the city), accumulating a heritage thanks to donations from Saint Louis or from Alphonse de Poitiers. Their white cross suit from Malta and their small community (4-5 monks) contrasted with the extent of their possessions, confiscated in 1791.

Architectural remains include a cave with dogive cross-sections, ravens marking the location of the cloister, and a turret of remarkable proportions. The western wing once housed outbuildings ( stables, presses, wheat attices), while the courtyard retained greenhouses and melons. A house on the rue de Paris (n°19) is still part of the old trinitarian buildings. The site thus illustrates the reuse of a religious heritage in public buildings, typical of post-revolutionary transformations.

External links