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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Templar Chapel of Cressac, located in Coteaux-du-Blanzacais (formerly Cressac-Saint-Genis) in Charente, is the last vestige of a Templar Commanderie built between 1150 and 1160. Its location on the way to Santiago de Compostela and the presence of an inexhaustible well explain its choice by the Templars. After the dissolution of the order in 1312, the site passed to the Hospitallers of St John of Jerusalem, before being sold as a national good at the Revolution and transformed into an agricultural building.

Inside the chapel is decorated with 12th century unique frescoes, made with red clay and egg white, illustrating scenes of battles between crusaders and Saracens, such as the victory of 1163 at the Bocque. These partially restored paintings feature historical figures such as Hugues le Brun de Lusignan or Bishop Ademar, and symbols such as the flowers of royal lilies. A Huguenot cross, added after its acquisition by the United Protestant Church of Barbezieux in the 20th century, testifies to its current use as a place of worship.

Classified as a Historic Monument in 1914, the chapel underwent controversial restorations before 1969 and recent campaigns (2011 for waterproofing, 2013 for frescoes). Its rectangular plan, thick walls and foothills typical of Romanesque art make it a remarkable example of Templar architecture. A stone engraved with a "penitent hand" on the south wall recalls the medieval rituals associated with order.

The frescoes, studied by historians such as Paul Deschamps, reveal various artistic techniques: geometric friezes, narrative scenes in several stages, and details such as knights' heels or horses' hoofs. Their present state is also the result of subsequent interventions, including those of the painter Eugène Sadoux in the 19th century, who completed some gaps with personal interpretations.

Today owned by the united Protestant Church of Barbezieux, the chapel combines medieval heritage and contemporary use. Its history reflects the transitions between military orders, political revolutions and heritage preservation, while remaining a place of memory for the Crusades and Charentais Romanesque art.

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