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Origin and history

The chapel Saint-Louis de Beaucaire is a small religious building located in the former enclosure of Beaucaire Castle, in the Gard department, in the Occitanie region. It was built in the 13th century, around 1254, under the impulse of Louis IX, probably during the restoration of the castle after the siege of 1216 by the Albigois. His term, dedicated to Saint Louis, could be after his canonization in 1297, although his exact origin remains uncertain, with hypotheses evoking a first term dedicated to the Virgin Mary or Saint Michael.

The chapel, Romanesque style, has a simple rectangular plan (9x5 meters) and is backed by the castle walls. Its rustic appearance suggests that it served as a place of worship for the garrison, served by Benedictines. Despite the numerous sieges and damage suffered by the castle (1419, 1562, 1632), the chapel suffered little, intriguing some historians. In 1844, his state of disrepair led to a restoration and his classification as a historical monument in 1846.

The exterior architecture is distinguished by a square bell tower open with arches with geminied bays, supported by columns paired with capitals carved with foliage and characters. A cornice with 24 arches, decorated with ravens and roses, surmounts these openings. The façade also features a window surmounted by a saw teeth archvolt and a tympanum at the Maltese Cross. Inside, the nave in cradle, without ornaments, is illuminated by four narrow windows, reflecting a simplicity characteristic of military places of worship.

The chapel is built in large apparatus, with the exception of the vault, built in small apparatus. During the restoration of 1844, projecting modillons were added to the façade, absent from the earlier phases. These elements, along with its strategic location, underline its modest but essential role in the religious and military life of Beaucaire Castle in the Middle Ages.

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