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Origin and history

Saint Martin de Cigné Church, dedicated to Saint Martin de Tours, is a Catholic parish church located in the commune of Ambrières-les-Vallées, Mayenne. Its history dates back to at least the 11th or 12th century, as evidenced by the nave and the Romanesque door with double vesture. These elements, along with the eastern wall of the north transept, are the oldest remains of the building, maintaining an architectural style typical of this period.

In the 14th or 15th century, the church choir was rebuilt in a square shape and later completed by two side chapels. The un vaulted transept, surmounted by a tower, as well as two chapels forming the cross, also date from this early period. A small door in the north transept bears a Gothic inscription of the sixteenth century: Jesus. Maria. These changes reflect the architectural and religious evolution of the building over the centuries.

The church houses several remarkable elements, including two small altars dedicated to the Sainte-Vierge and Saint Joseph, located at the top of the nave. Three other altars, of the same design, are backed by the eastern wall. The altarpieces, especially the altarpiece, date from 1700 and are made of carved wood. Many shields adorn the building, representing the weapons of local families such as the Vaucelles, the Lodge, the Cigogne, the Haie and the Leforestier, attesting to the historical links between the church and the regional aristocracy.

Several pious foundations marked the history of the church. In 1591 Gilles Dagron and Guyonne de Romagné, Sieur et Dame de Beauchesne, founded the chapel of Saint-Jacques-de-l'Étondelière, with three weekly Masses. Later, Guillaume Deroyer financed the Mass of the Blessed Sacrament every Thursday before 1657, while Baptiste Hayrie established the Mass of the Five Pleas on Tuesday in 1657. These foundations illustrate the importance of the church in spiritual and community life.

The church also housed ancient brotherhoods, such as the Rosary and the Trépassés. Among his relics, a plot of the True Cross, obtained by the parish priest Jean-Louis-René Caquia in 1774, was preserved during the French Revolution. Another relic, St Matthew's, preserved in an arm - shaped reliquary, was worshipped annually on Sunday, September 21. The 1906 inventory, made on February 10, marks an important administrative event in its recent history.

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