Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The chapel of Sainte-Thérèse, originally private chapel of the Château d'Arbrun villa built in 1907 for the writer Raymond de Laborde, became in 1921 a dependency of the Institut d'Aquitaine of Bordeaux. The bishop of Aire and Dax authorizes its construction to serve the remote area of the beach, on condition of reserving its use to the residents of the villa. Abbé Élie Gabarra acquired it in 1925 for 50,000 francs, completing the work (sacristy, altar, crepi) with the help of local donors such as Mr. Baylocq de Pau or Bishop de Cormont.

In 1933-34, the building was covered and crept, then enriched in 1947 by a fresco by Marcel-Louis Dillais celebrating the first Fête de la Mer, representing local personalities (Mayor Élie Despouys, fishermen Lacoste, parish priest Puzo). The chapel was then embellished with a panelling (1950), a marble altar (1951), a second maritime fresco (1952) and a bell blessed by Bishop Mathieu, from the Fourcade foundry. Its stained glass windows, signed Mauméjean, and its star Stella Maris engraved on the threshold underline its link with the sea and the fishermen.

A symbol of the Irish religious and maritime heritage, the chapel illustrates the evolution of a private place in community space, marked by donations and works of art celebrating local life. Its history also reflects the importance of Catholicism in the region, between nascent seaside traditions and port activities. The frescoes, by immortalizing local figures (Bishop Mathieu, trawler Porte-du-Large), anchor the monument in the social history of Capbreton in the 20th century.

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