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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Romain de Curzon, located in the Vendée department, houses under its choir a crypt classified as Historic Monuments since 1875. This crypt, dated from the beginning of the eleventh century, is one of the seven still preserved in the department. It is divided into three naves by two rows of columns, with capitals decorated with floral and decorative motifs. Its access is via a steep staircase leading to a square space extended by a semicircular apse illuminated by a single window.

The initial church, dedicated to Romain de Blaye, evangelizer of the coasts of Poitou and Guyenne in the fourth century, was replaced by an crypt in the eleventh century. In the 13th century, a new church was built above, but damaged during religious wars in the 16th century. In 1873, the building, threatened with collapse, was almost entirely rebuilt by architect Victor Clair, who also raised the bell tower's arrow. The crypt, the only classified part, bears witness to the Romanesque architecture of the region.

The church of Saint-Romain, dedicated to the patron of the sailors, was an archipriated seat in the Middle Ages under the authority of the bishop of Poitiers and then of the abbot of Saint-Michel-en-l-Herm. The crypt, with its nine arch vaults and columns, illustrates Curzon's religious and historical importance. In 1868 the architect Victor-Auguste Loué proposed a restoration project, but only the crypt was finally classified in 1875, after discussions on the extent of the works.

Today, the church belongs to the parish of Saint-Jacques-du-Val-Graon, in the diocese of Luçon. It preserves patriotic stained glass made in 1938 by Luc Fournier, as well as a statue and a stained glass window dedicated to Saint Roman. The crypt, owned by the commune, remains a rare testimony of Romanesque architecture in Vendée.

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