Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Church of Notre-Dame-la-Major d'Arles, also known as the Church of the Major, finds its origins in a primitive building consecrated in 452 by Archbishop Ravennius at the Third Council of Arles. This first place of worship, dedicated to Sainte-Marie-Major, was built on the remains of a Roman temple dedicated to Cybelus, as evidenced by the artifacts preserved in the departmental museum of ancient Arles. The church even hosted the 5th Council of Arles in 554 under Childebert I.

The reconstruction of the building in Provencal Romanesque style began in 1152, of which the three spans of the nave remain today. After becoming a collegiate church in 1551 by a bubble of Pope Julius III, the church underwent important transformations: the reconstruction of the choir and abside in the 16th century, the building of the square bell tower surmounted by a pyramid in 1579, and the addition of a Virgin to the Child in 1867. Lateral chapels were added between the 16th and 17th centuries, while the façade was redone at the beginning of the 17th century in a Louis XIII style.

The church housed prestigious relics, like a mandible of St Mark offered by Venice in thanks for food aid, now gone. It was also the seat of local confraternities, including that of the shepherds (Saint Véran) and then of the gardians of Saint George, who still celebrate their annual pilgrimage there on May 1. Ranked Historic Monument in 1945 after damage sustained during the 1944 bombings, it benefited from major restorations between 1980 and 1988 to consolidate its foundations.

Its interior contains remarkable furniture, including polychrome marble altarpieces, classified statues (such as that of Saint George terrasing the dragon), and paintings of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries from Arlesian convents. The organ, installed in 1698 and redesigned several times, also bears witness to its rich heritage. The stalls of the choir, carved in 1716 by Jean-Baptiste Laroche, and the walnut panelling complete this artistic ensemble.

The church of the Major thus illustrates almost sixteen centuries of religious and architectural history, from its paleo-Christian foundations to its present role as a place of worship and memory for Provençal traditions, especially those related to the Camargue and its Gardians.

External links