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Origin and history

The church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste de La Selle-en-Luitré, located in the department of Ille-et-Vilaine in Brittany, dates mainly from the 2nd half of the 15th century, although its nave retains traces of an earlier Romanesque apparatus. The building, modified in the 16th and 17th centuries, underwent major restorations in the early 19th century (concordatary period), while its western massif and bell tower were completely rebuilt in 1957. Since November 5, 1926, it has been listed as a historic monument, and is distinguished by its triangular enclosure cemetery and its double-flying northern gate overlooking the Couesnon Valley.

Inside, the church houses exceptional religious furniture, including three 17th-century altarpieces attributed to the Lavallois architect François Langlois (1686–87). These works, characteristic of the Counter-Reform, were completed in the 19th century to overcome revolutionary destructions. Among them, the altarpiece of the high altar, classified, features statues of saints, a golden tabernacle and a painting of the Trinity by Guillaume Gobert, a fervour painter. The stained glass windows, made between 1878 and 1922 by Gesta (Toulouse), Alleaume (Laval) and Jean Klein (Rennes), illustrate biblical scenes and Marian apparitions.

The parish of La Selle-en-Luitré, erected in 1803 after being a truve of Luitré, was historically dependent on the diocese of Rennes. Its church, of modest dimensions, reflects local history, with elements such as an octagonal column of the 15th century, panels of 1658, and a massive gargoyle. The current concrete campanile has replaced a medieval belfry since 1957 and houses two bells, one restored in 2019. The building, a communal property, remains an architectural and artistic testimony of rural Brittany.

The secondary retables, such as that of Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours (1687) or Saint Pierre (reorganized in 1873–74 by local carpenter Jean-Marie Groussard), combine Baroque and neoclassical styles. Groussard also carved in 1878 a niche for the Sacred Heart and golden copper baptismal panels. These groups, classified or registered, underline the central role of the church in religious and community life, from the Middle Ages to the contemporary era.

The inscription of historic monuments in 1926 preserved unique elements, such as the 19th and 20th century stained glass windows (partly inscribed in 1990) or the three retables of the Grand Century, restored in 2007 by the Chapel Workshops. The church, now attached to the parish of Saint-Gilles de Mué (dean of Fougères), embodies both the medieval Breton heritage and the post-concordatary liturgical evolutions.

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