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Origin and history

The Church of Notre-Dame d'Etretat, located in the Seine-Maritime department in Normandy, is a religious building marked by a double architectural influence. Its construction began in the 11th and 12th centuries under the dependence of the abbey of Fécamp, a powerful monastic institution of the region, explaining its disproportionate size for a village of this size. From the beginning, the building combines Romanesque elements — visible in the facade and the first six spans of the nave — and Gothic elements, such as the choir and transept erected between the late 12th and mid 13th centuries. The tower, characteristic of Norman Gothic and English, overlooks the cross of the transept, illuminated by eight lancet windows.

Over the centuries, the church underwent several major changes. In the 18th century, the jube separating the nave from the choir was destroyed, following a national trend, and the windows were enlarged to increase brightness. A fire then damaged the bell tower, rebuilt later. The 19th century marked an important period of restoration: the vaults were redone, a sacristy was added, and new stained glass windows were installed. The tympanum of the facade, replaced at that time, is now in poor condition. The organ, the work of the factor Cavaillé-Coll, and a 14th-century statue of the Virgin in the north side are among the remarkable elements of the furniture.

Ranked a historic monument in 1840, the church also bears the trace of recent history. During World War I, Etretat hosted a military hospital, and Commonwealth soldiers rested in the adjacent cemetery. Inside, flags recall the maritime vocation of the village, while the exterior reveals picturesque Romanesque ravens and a "screen" facade typical of the Norman novel. The building also inspires Guy de Maupassant, who devotes him a new title entitled Conflicts pour laughter in his collection Contes et nouvelles.

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