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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Étienne de Concoules, located in the north of the Gard department in Occitanie region, is a Romanesque religious building built in the twelfth century. It is distinguished by its structure in carved granite blocks, covered with lauze, and its plan in Greek cross formed by a nave of two spans and a choir with oblong apse. The first span, which remained close to its original state, was arched in a slightly broken cradle and limited to the west by a gable bearing a bell tower. The Romanesque capitals of its inner columns, decorated with leaves, bear witness to its medieval heritage.

The west gable wall, originally low, was raised in the 13th century to accommodate the four arched bell tower. In the modern era, a stand was added in the first span, while the choir and the abside were vaulted on dogive crosses. The church, inscribed in the historic monuments in 1949 for its west facade and adjoining span, reflects the Cevenola religious architecture, marked by the use of local materials such as granite and lauze.

Concoules, a rural commune of the Cevennes Gardoises, is crossed by the Regordane road, an ancient route of pilgrimage and trade. Its natural heritage, protected by the Cevennes National Park and classified Natura 2000, surrounds this historic monument. The church, a communal property, is part of a medium mountain landscape, between forests and valleys, where medieval history blends with preserved biodiversity.

The region, marked by the seigneury of Villefort in the Middle Ages, was renamed Montagne-Cocoles during the Revolution. Today, Saint Stephen's church, with its side chapels and its characteristic bell tower, remains a symbol of the Cevenol Romanesque heritage, linked to local history and notable families such as Alphonse Daudet, whose father was from a nearby hamlet.

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