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Origin and history

The church of Notre-Dame de Villeréal was built in the middle of the 13th century, simultaneously with the foundation of the bastide in 1264 by Alphonse de Poitiers, Count of Toulouse. The latter, through his marriage with Jeanne de Toulouse, undertook the creation of several bastides (Monflanquin, Castillonnès, Eymet) to colonize the region in front of English possessions in Aquitaine. The building, of a southern Gothic style with a unique nave, was designed as a place of Catholic worship and a refuge for the inhabitants in the event of conflict, communicating with the strong neighbour and protected by a ditch and a drawbridge.

The church was looted during the Wars of Religion, especially by Protestants on 25 October 1572. The adjacent fort was destroyed in 1794. A major restoration took place in 1881: the vault was rebuilt, the walls raised by four meters, and stained glass windows depicting biblical scenes and the life of the Virgin were added. These stained glass windows, signed by Henri Feur, master glassmaker from Bordeaux, still embellish the building today. The church was listed as a historic monument in 1927.

Architecturally, the church is distinguished by its western facade flanked by two square turrets connected by a crenelated round road. A bell tower with three bays overhangs the whole. The main gate, decorated with statuettes on the harps, preserves a partially destroyed tympanum, the upper part of which shows three carved characters. Inside, a five-span nave and a arched transept characterize the space, supplemented by two chapels added later.

The building illustrates the dual role of churches in medieval bastides: place of worship and defensive element integrated into urban planning. Its construction is part of the context of Franco-English rivalries in Aquitaine, where the bastides served both as economic hubs and strongholds. The restoration of the 19th century preserved this heritage while adapting it to modern liturgical needs.

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