Foundation of the Brotherhood 1657 (≈ 1657)
Episcopal authorization for white penitents.
1667
Blessing of the chapel
Blessing of the chapel 1667 (≈ 1667)
Consecration after construction.
1801
Post-Revolution Reopening
Post-Revolution Reopening 1801 (≈ 1801)
Reestablished after the agreement.
1803
Reorganization of the Brotherhood
Reorganization of the Brotherhood 1803 (≈ 1803)
New structure after 1801.
1994
Registration for Historic Monuments
Registration for Historic Monuments 1994 (≈ 1994)
Partial protection of the building.
2014
Complete classification
Complete classification 2014 (≈ 2014)
Total protection of the chapel.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The old chapel in its entirety, as well as its constructions and associated courses, as delimited in red on the plan annexed to the decree (Case EX 234): classification by order of 14 February 2014
Key figures
Évêque d’Agen (non nommé) - Religious Authority
Authorized the brotherhood in 1657.
Jean Fournier - Painter
Author of the Calvary painting (1687).
Origin and history
The Chapel of the White Penitents of Villeneuve-sur-Lot, located in the Lot-et-Garonne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, is an ancient Catholic chapel founded in the 17th century. It was built after the authorization of the bishop of Agen in 1657 for a brotherhood of white Penitents, dedicated to Saint John the Baptist and Saint Louis. The chapel, blessed in 1667, was closed during the Revolution and reopened after the concordat of 1801, with a reorganization of the brotherhood in 1803. It served as a place of worship until 1937, before becoming a municipal cultural space after 2002.
The chapel, inserted into the urban fabric of the popular parish of Saint-Étienne, competed with that of the Blue Penitents, founded in 1611 and reserved for notables. Its furniture, such as the 19th-century ionic altarpiece or the Calvary painting by Jean Fournier (1687), reflects its history. The building, restored in 2002, was registered in 1994 and ranked in 2014. It includes a chapel, a sacristy, a gallery and a meeting room, typical of the penitential brotherhoods.
The recruitment of the White Penitents, more popular than that of the Blue Penitents, illustrates the social divisions of Villeneuve-sur-Lot in the 17th and 18th centuries. The brotherhood, dissolved in the 1930s, gave way to diocesan and then cultural uses. Today, the chapel preserves heritage elements such as pilgrim sticks, procession crosses and statues, witnesses to its religious and community past.
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