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Origin and history

The Notre-Dame-du-Marthuret church, located in Riom in the north of the Auvergne, is a southern Gothic building marked by a complex history. Its origin dates back to 1240, when secular priests, organized in Universitas clericorum riomensium, obtained permission to build a chapel in the Marthuret district, an occitan term referring to a cemetery. Under the impulse of Alphonse de Poitiers, Count of Auvergne, and with the support of Pope Innocent IV, the chapel was erected between 1245 and 1263, then transformed into a church in 1291. The term Notre Dame reflects her dedication to the Virgin Mary, the object of a major cult in Riom, where up to twenty-five local brotherhoods were placed under her patronage.

The early church, completed in 1291, was destroyed by fire in 1308. Rebuilt in the southern Gothic style, it adopts a simple nave with a three chapel apse and a chorus remodeled in 1340. In the 15th century, the façade was enlarged and embellished, thanks in particular to the authorization of Charles I of Bourbon, while Renaissance chapels, such as that of Santiago (16th century), were added. The characteristic dome of the north tower, erected in 1584 to replace an arrow damaged by earthquakes, became a symbol of the city, although it was destroyed by a storm in 1646 and rebuilt in 1648.

The French Revolution marked a turning point for the church: in 1789, its properties were nationalized, and the emblematic statue of the Virgin at the Bird (XV century), attributed to the sculptor Pierre de Thury, was preserved in extremis by the inhabitants. Ranked a historic monument in 1930 after controversial restorations in the 19th century (notably by architect Mallay), the church now houses major works, such as 15th–12th century stained glass windows, a medieval Black Virgin, and a Callinet organ of 1838. Its pastoral and cultural role continues, bearing witness to eight centuries of religious and artistic history.

Among the remarkable elements, the Virgin at the Bird, classified in 1902, illustrates an apocryphal episode of Christ's childhood and embodies the know-how of Burgundy sculptors. The stained glass windows, such as that of the Annunciation (1450–1460) or the 19th century glass windows by Émile Thibaud, reflect the evolution of techniques and devotions. The brotherhoods, active until the 17th century, marked the social life of Riom, with corporations (goldsmiths, tanners) celebrating their patron saints in its chapels.

The church architecture, combining southern Gothic and neo-Gothic additions, reveals the tensions between preservation and modernization. Declassified and reclassified in the 19th century, it owes its survival to local interventions, such as that of parish priest Chabrier (1823–56), which enlarged the building. Today, its dome, side chapels, and furniture make it a jewel of the riomois heritage, inseparable from the history of the Royal Land of Auvergne and its medieval heritage.

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