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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Hilaire of Agen, originally built as the church of the Cordeliers (Minor Brothers) in the 14th century, replaces a first convent founded between 1240 and 1272 near the Saint-Michel gate. In 1336, Philip VI of Valois ordered his destruction for strategic reasons (conflict with England) and authorized his intramural reconstruction in 1345, in the Saint-Hilaire district. The church, completed in 1348, houses the cemetery blessed by the bishop of Ajaccio. Its southern gothic plan (single nave, lateral chapels, apse to seven sides) and its overturned frame (classified in 1920) make it a remarkable building.

During the Revolution, the church was seized as a national property (1790), serving in turn as barracks, stables and forage stores. In 1818, in the face of the ruin of the former parish of Saint-Hilaire, the community obtained its transfer to the former church of the Cordeliers, formalized in 1826. The 19th century saw important changes: a neoclassical facade (Louis XV style) and a bell tower added in 1866 (architect Verdier), topped in 1892 by a slender arrow (Leopold Payen). The stained glass windows, signed Joseph Villiet (1869), complete this transformation.

The church is also linked to social history: in 1944, the parishioner Marthe Dortel-Claudot, with Canon Desorbes, launched a call for Franco-German reconciliation, leading to the founding of the Pax Christi movement (1945), supported by Bishop Théas, Bishop of Montauban. Today, the building combines medieval heritage (stone and brick, warheads) and modern additions, reflecting its evolution between worship, conflict and heritage.

Heritage protection: the structure was classified in 1920, followed by the church (outside the 19th facade) in 1947, and then by the façade in 1988. A 16th century Pièta, once preserved on site, is now on display at the Museum of Fine Arts in Agen.

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