Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The parish church of Saint-Clémentin and its priory, located in Voulmentin (New Aquitaine), found their origins in the 11th century, when the monks of Saint-Florent de Saumur took possession of it. The Romanesque building was partially rebuilt in the 15th and 16th centuries, before being devastated during the Wars of Religion by Protestants. At that time, the church had a nave, a choir and a chapel with a flat bedside, but only the structure of the bell tower, the main foothills and the portal adorned with a gable with a fleuron, remained medieval periods.

In the 19th century, architect Jousset undertook a major reconstruction between 1878 and 1882, building a new building and a metal arrow richly decorated with gargoyles, rubbish and abat-son. The bell tower-porch, the only vestige of the 15th to 16th centuries, preserves a vault arched on eight-quartered dogives, whose veins converge towards a central oculus. Together, including the portal of the former priory, was classified as a Historic Monument in 1989 for its architectural and historical interest.

The church thus illustrates the religious and architectural transformations of the region, marked by the conflicts of the sixteenth century and the restorations of the nineteenth century. Today, it is a communal property that bears witness to the Romano-Gothic heritage and subsequent interventions, such as that of architect Lefèvre, associated with the 19th century works.

External links