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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Barthélemy de Castéra-Bouzet, located in Tarn-et-Garonne in Occitanie, came into being in the 12th century, when the Bouzet family, the local lord, probably financed its construction. The original Romanesque building included a choir and a nave whose foundations still remain today. The committed columns and the caps of the chapels, partially destroyed, bear witness to this first architectural phase.

In the 16th century, the church was largely rebuilt by preserving its medieval foundations, but the planned vault will never be completed. The choir adopts a pentagonal plane, while the nave, divided into four spans, incorporates Renaissance and classical elements, visible in decorated capitals. The lateral chapels, formerly four (one per span), are gradually destroyed, with the exception of two remaining chapels, including an old seigneurial chapel.

A 17th-century portal, adorned with ionic pilasters and surmounted by a triangular shielded pediment, is added on the third left span. The original bell tower with campanar bays was rebuilt in 1879 and destroyed by a hurricane in 1913. After World War I, he was replaced by a campanile. A major restoration took place in 2012, while the church was listed as a historical monument in 1979.

Among the remarkable details, a northern chapel bears the date of 1639, and the porch is dated 1837. Several liturgical objects of the church are listed in the Palissy base, highlighting its rich furniture heritage. Sources also mention links to the Bouzet seigneury, whose name marked the history of the village.

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