Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Saint-Didier de Neyron, located in the district of Saint-Didier (Neyron Le Haut), dates back to the 10th century, although traces of a chapel existed since the 4th century. The current building, which has been redesigned several times (especially in the 19th century), retains a Greek cross structure with a transept and a nave of the same length. It is dedicated to Didier de Vienne, whose remains reportedly passed through Neyron in 620.

The southern chapel, dedicated to Saint Bernard and then to the Blessed Virgin, was built in 1478 by Perceval de La Balme, local lord and squire of Philip II of Savoy. Restored in 1682 by Mathieu Gaillat, it was enlarged in 1828. The church houses tombstones, including that of Perceval de La Balme (c. 1500) and Jeanne Marie Perrodon (1836), ancestor of General Émile Perrodon, native of Neyron.

Inside, the nave features stained glass windows commemorating the deaths of the First World War, made by the Lyon glassmaker Pasquier Sarrazin. Five objects, including a painting by La Nativity and three statues, are classified as historical monuments. The building, facing east-west, retains a metal statue of the Virgin, formerly attached to its façade.

The church, the only place of Catholic worship in Neyron, depends on the parish group of Miribel, in the diocese of Belley-Ars (archdiocese of Lyon). Its west porch bears the inscription "Introite adorate dominum in atrio sancto eius", inviting to worship. The altars, three from the thirteenth century onwards, reflect its architectural and spiritual evolution.

The sources also mention links with the Perrodon family: an epitaph honours Amandine de Bonnevie-Pogniat, first wife of Émile Perrodon (1832). This general and painter, born in Neyron, illustrates the local anchoring of the building in regional family and military history.

External links