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Church of Saint Martin of Valaurie dans la Drôme

Patrimoine classé
Patrimoine religieux
Eglise
Eglise romane

Church of Saint Martin of Valaurie

    2 Rue Honorius Valentin 
    26230 Valaurie
Ownership of the municipality
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Église Saint-Martin de Valaurie
Crédit photo : Remi Mathis - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Haut Moyen Âge
Moyen Âge central
Bas Moyen Âge
Renaissance
Temps modernes
Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
500
600
1200
1300
1400
1500
1600
1700
1800
1900
2000
Ve siècle
Alleged foundations
XIIe siècle
Initial construction
1305
Hospital registration
Fin XVe - Début XVIe siècle
Addition of the bell tower
1673
Restoration of the vault
Fin XVIe siècle
Damage during the Wars of Religion
17 juillet 1926
Historical Monument
1934
Earthquake
1946
Repair of the bell tower
1958
Nave spread
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

Church: registration by decree of 17 July 1926

Key figures

Pons Gaudi Petit - Mason Recast the vault in 1673.
René Margotton - Glass painter Author of the stained glass *The sharing of the coat*.
Abbé Raoul Buix - Local priest Initiator of repairs in 1960.
Chaix - Entrepreneur Restoration of the choir in 1937.
H. Joulie - Architect Forecast for consolidation (not achieved).

Origin and history

The Saint-Martin church of Valaurie, located in the Drôme, is a Romanesque building of the 12th and 15th centuries, marked by a turbulent history. Its foundations may date back to the fifth century, but its current structure dates mainly from the twelfth century. Originally parish church and place of worship of a nearby priory, it was built outside the walls of the village, a special feature for the time. Its Provencal Romanesque architecture, with a nave of three spans and an outdoor pentagonal bedside, makes it a rare example in the Tricastin region. The bell tower, advanced in facade and surmounted by a stone arrow, was added or redesigned at the end of the 15th or early 16th century.

The church suffered numerous damage over the centuries, especially during the Wars of Religion in the late sixteenth century, then in 1934 because of an earthquake, and during the Second World War, where its bell was cracked. Several restoration campaigns took place, as in 1673 for the vault of the nave, or in 1937 for the choir after the earthquake. The stained glass of René Margotton, representing the division of the mantle of Saint Martin, adorns the altar. Ranked a Historic Monument in 1926, it preserves traces of its medieval past, such as an inscription of 1305 commemorating the foundation of a hospital, or later added lateral chapels, including that of the Virgin in the 19th century.

Architecturally, the church is distinguished by its semicircular apse inside and pentagonal outside, rhythmic by Corinthian pilasters and curved modillons. The nave, vaulted in the middle of the hanger, is illuminated by double-brasing windows. The bell tower, with its pyramidal stone roof, dominates the whole and houses a bell chamber pierced with bays in the middle of the hanger. The materials used, such as the small bedside apparatus and limestone bellows for the rest, reflect local techniques. Despite the successive repairs, some of which were financed by the Fondation du Patrimoine, fir trees, installed in 1958, still bear witness to its structural fragility.

External links