Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Saint-Maurice church of Oiron, located in the commune of Plaine-et-Vallées (Deux-Sèvres), is a former collegiate church built between the 16th and 17th centuries. It replaces a first church mentioned in 955-956, destroyed by an earthquake in the late 1000s. The present building was initiated by Artus Gouffier in 1519, after obtaining a pontifical bubble in 1518, to make it a collegiate and family necropolis. After his death two months later, his wife Hélène de Hangest and their son Claude Gouffier continued the work until it was completed around 1550.

The collegiate church, classified as Monument Historique in 1840, presents a mixture of flamboyant Gothic and Renaissance architecture. It was intended to welcome the tombs of the Gouffier, whose gisers were carved by Giovanni de Giusto Betti in 1539. The tombs were damaged by Protestants after the Battle of Moncontour in 1569. The building is distinguished by its unique nave, transept, and a choir decorated with heraldic decorations reflecting the influence of Hélène de Hangest and Claude Gouffier.

The church also housed a chapter of seven canons and four choir children to celebrate the services of the family. The access was differentiated: the villagers entered by the west, while the lords used a north door leading to the castle. Inside, a large altarpiece separates the choir from the abside, and a 17th-century organ buffet, originally placed to the west, was moved into the southern crusillon. Among the curiosities, a crocodile, probably from the firm of Claude Gouffier, is still preserved there.

Notable architectural elements include narrow buttresses, flamboyant-filled windows, and a massive bell tower. The sculpted decor, combining Renaissance (candelabras, arabesque) and heraldic motifs, bears witness to the personal involvement of Hélène de Hangest. Only four tombs remain today, the others having been destroyed or dispersed during the Revolution. The church remains a major testimony of the aristocratic patronage and funeral art of the Renaissance in Poitou.

External links