Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Collège Notre-Dame d'Auffay, founded in the 11th century by Gilbert, seigneur of Auffay, was initially served by six regular canons of Saint-Augustin in 1060, then by Benedictine monks of Saint-Évroult in 1079. Rebuilt in the 13th century, his nave collapsed shortly afterwards, requiring an intervention by the archbishop of Rouen Eudes Rigaud in 1264. The chapels south (14th century, radiant style) and north (15th century, flamboyant style) were later added, while the choir was rebuilt in the Renaissance. The gate, financed by Henry IV around 1600, and a wooden arrow (1735) replacing a collapsed bell tower marked other key steps.

Over the centuries, the college suffered several destructions: a fire by the soldiers of Charles the Temerary in 1472, lightning striking its arrow in 1867 (replaced in 1872 by a stone arrow), and a new fire in 1940 by the German troops. Major restorations took place after 1940, making the choir public in 1955 and the nave in 1967. Ranked a historic monument in 1846, and again in 1913, it now houses stained glass windows by Max Ingrand and Michel Durand, as well as paintings by Roger Tolmer.

The architecture of the college combines a 13th century Gothic nave, a partially Romanesque transept, and a Renaissance choir. Its 70-metre-high bell tower houses two 1873 oak jacquemarts, named Houzou Bénard and Paquet Sivière. These automatons, local symbols, were installed after the clock was restored. The imposing dimensions (55 m long, 23 m wide for the choir) and the diversity of styles make it a unique testimony of Norman religious history.

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