Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Abbey Church of Madeleine, located in Châteaudun (Eure-et-Loir), is a religious building built over centuries. The oldest parts date from the 12th century, with major additions to the 13th and 16th centuries. The church has been listed as a historic monument since 1922, and a 15th or 16th century tomb, decorated with pilasters and female figures, has also been protected since 1908. The façade retains traces of a defensive system linked to the old fortifications of the city, while the current polygonal choir was rebuilt in the early 16th century.

The history of the abbey is marked by religious and administrative events. In 1152, the bishop of Chartres, Gosselin de Lèves, ratified the attachment of Saint-Pierre de Lanneray church to the abbey. In the 15th century, parish registers (baptisms and marriages) attest to its activity. In 1546, the abbey became commende, and in 1634, under the abbatiate of Jacques de La Ferté, the genovéfaine reform was introduced. The glazed nave frame and the wreckage of the northern collateral probably date from this transformation period.

The church of the Madeleine is now part of the parish of Saint Aventin in Dunois, in the dean of Dunois. Its architecture combines medieval elements, such as the arches in the middle and the remains of the old vaults, with more recent additions, such as a plaster colonnade installed in 1833. The monument thus illustrates the evolution of religious styles and uses over nearly five centuries.

Among the notable abbots were Claude de Riants (1705-1711), Jean-Baptiste de Johanne de Saumery (1711-1728), and François Vidaud de la Tour (1743-1773), canon of Grenoble and cleric adviser to the Parliament of Dauphiné. These figures marked the administrative and spiritual history of the abbey until the French Revolution.

The church also preserves carved elements and traces of its medieval past, such as the triforium and the high windows of the nave. These architectural details, combined with its status as a historical monument, make it a valuable testimony to the religious and artistic heritage of the Centre-Val de Loire region.

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