Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Notre-Dame-de-Fougeray, located in Cormery in Indre-et-Loire, is a 12th century religious building built on the initiative of the monks of Saint Paul Abbey. Its strategic location, on the edge of the Indre Valley and near the medieval cemetery, allowed the lay people to attend the offices without entering the monastic enclosure. The construction took place in two phases: the transept and the chorus first, followed by the nave, according to a chronology inverse to that originally proposed by Octave Bobeau.

The 13th century frescoes, partially covering the walls of the nave, illustrate religious scenes linked to death, in connection with the adjacent cemetery. The church suffered major damage during the Hundred Years War (1358), when the bell tower was shot down and the attic burned by an armed band. Reconstructed in the 15th century with a less ambitious arrow, the bell tower and the frame were restored, while 15th century stalls, from St Paul's Abbey, were installed.

Ranked a historic monument in 1912, the church retains remarkable elements such as a 12th century baptismal tank, 11th century enigmatic statues in the choir, and 19th century glass windows signed by Julien-Leopold Lobin. Its architecture, blending Romanesque vaults and pendentive dome inspired by the neighboring abbey, reflects the successive adaptations, including an 18th-century madigeon partially masking frescoes, rediscovered in the 20th century.

External links