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Origin and history

The Church of St. Hilary of Agen, also known as Tower of the white penitents, is a building of the eleventh century, today in ruins. Originally, it consisted of a unique nave extended by a narrower choir, topped by a stone bell tower. The hemicrcular abside, decorated with sculptures, allows to date its construction between the 11th and the first half of the 12th century. Its initial architecture reflected the Romanesque canons of the time, with structural simplicity typical of the rural or urban churches of this period.

At the beginning of the 13th century, the church was enlarged with the addition of two collaterals and two arched apsidioles in cul-de-four. The walls of the collaterals were enhanced to support a single roof covering the entire building. On an undetermined but contemporary date of this enlargement, the bell tower-wall was integrated into a brick hexagonal tower, forming a Gothic bell tower. This transformation illustrates the evolution of architectural styles, from Romanesque to Gothic, as well as the adaptation of the building to the needs of a growing community.

In the 14th century, a convent of cordons was established near the Saint George Gate. Their property was seized in 1790, and part of the convent served as barracks for the gendarmerie until 1840. The church of the cordiers, on the other hand, will house the departmental electoral assembly in 1790, before being converted into stables and forage stores. In 1818, in front of the old parish church of Saint-Hilaire, the parish was transferred to the old church of the cordons, at the request of the inhabitants, the parish priest and the local authorities.

The alignment plan of Agen in 1861 resulted in the destruction of the west façade of the church and the first span of the nave, reducing the building by more than 6 metres. Used as a warehouse, it was ravaged by a fire in 1913. The municipality even planned to sell its bell tower in 1911. The ruins of Saint-Hilaire were finally listed as historical monuments on 20 June 1950, thus preserving the remains of a medieval heritage marked by the hazards of history.

The church of Saint-Hilaire also served as a burial place for local noble families. In 1722 Nicolas de Bastard, a great voyer of France and lord of Saint-Denis-sur-Garonne, was buried there in front of the altar of Saint-Martin. His son, Dominique de Bastard, joined the family grave in 1729. These tombs testify to the social and religious role of the church, a place of memory for the Agenese aristocracy until the eighteenth century.

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