Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Saint-Florentin, originally dedicated to Saint Martin, was destroyed in the 14th century during the wars, then rebuilt from 1520 on a hillside where a castle was once found. Its construction, marked by engraved dates (1520-1550), was slowed down by the Wars of Religion, leaving the nave unfinished. The jube, dated 1600, and the 16th century glass windows, financed by nobles and commoners, bear witness to its rich artistic heritage.

The glass windows, classified as Historical Monuments, illustrate biblical and hagiographic scenes, such as the life of Saint Florentin, Saint Martin, or Genesis. Restored in the 19th and 20th centuries, they combine late Gothic and Renaissance styles. The church, classified in 1840, also preserves an organ from the 17th to the 20th century. Recent works (since 2021) aim to preserve this emblematic monument of Burgundy-Franche-Comté.

The interior is distinguished by its 16th century choir and walk-through, its Renaissance Jube, and chapels decorated with retables and bas-reliefs. Donors, such as Guillaume Servin or Louise de Roffey, are represented alongside patron saints. Despite revolutionary destructions and controversial restorations, the church remains a major testimony of Burgundy sacred art.

The architecture combines a short nave, a non-exciting transept, and an elongated choir with a walk-in. The flamboyant Gothic, Renaissance, and classical styles (seventeenth century facades) are alongside. The stained glass, attributed to the Troyenne school, is one of the most complete sets in France for this period. The building, a communal property, dominates the city from a hill near the Armançon Canal.

The glass windows from 1524 to 1529, like those of the Creation of the World or of the Life of St John, reveal remarkable narrative techniques and iconographic details. Donors, from the local bourgeoisie (goodmen, officers) or nobility (teachers of Coursan, La Roëre), are immortalized there with their coat of arms. These works, restored by the Veyssières brothers or Charles Lévêque, survived the conflicts and outrages of time.

Ranked in 1840, the church benefited from major restorations in the 19th century (voûts redone according to Viollet-le-Duc, renovated facade). However, recent work (2022) has been controversial due to destruction in the protected perimeter. Today, it remains a place of worship and a tourist site, open to the public, illustrating five centuries of religious and artistic history in Burgundy.

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