Church of Saint Martin à Horsarrieu dans les Landes

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Origin and history

The Saint Martin church, located in Horsarrieu in the Landes, was built at the end of the 15th century in a flamboyant Gothic style. Originally, it served as a seigneurial chapel dependent on the neighbouring castle, before replacing in 1871 the former parish church Saint Martin the Netherlands, destroyed that year. Its massive bell tower, of the dungeon type, and its portal reflect this period of post-war reconstruction of Hundred Years, while murderers recall its defensive role.

The building suffered multiple vicissitudes: burned in 1569 by Protestant troops during the Wars of Religion, it lost its vaults of the choir and the span under bell tower. Summaryly repaired in the 17th and 18th centuries, it was transformed into a temple of Reason in 1794. In the 19th century, major restoration campaigns took place: restoration of the vault of the choir in 1841, addition of a northern collateral in 1865-1867, and partial reconstruction after a fire caused by lightning in 1947.

The present church thus combines medieval elements (main nave, flat bedside pierced with Gothic windows) and modern additions (collateral, northern sacristy). His term, originally dedicated to Saint Blaise, adopted that of Saint Martin in 1871, inherited from the old parish. Ranked a historic monument in 1939, it preserves traces of its defensive, religious and community past, such as the liernes and thirdons of its vaults or 19th century decorative paintings.

Among its features are a cul-de-lampe representing a Landais with a beret, a crucifixion of the early 19th century, and a stone staircase leading to the bell tower. The restorations of 1981-1982, supervised by architect Cheynel, gave him his present appearance, combining historical authenticity and contemporary adaptations.

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