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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The St. Peter's church of Oeyreluy, located in the Landes in New Aquitaine, is a former priory dependent on the Abbey of Divielle. Built at the beginning of the Romanesque period, it uses the stones of an ancient villa destroyed. Its Romanesque portal, probably from the 12th century, has been listed as historical monuments since 1926. The building, originally built near Luy, was dismantled and rebuilt stone by stone in the centre of the village before the Revolution due to frequent flooding.

The church underwent several changes over the centuries: the addition of side chapels (1843 and 1902), the replacement of the altar in 1864, and the restoration of bedside windows in the 1970s. Its imperial bell tower, surmounted by an arrow, dominates a triangular nave and a semicircular apse. The Romanesque portal, adorned with complex sculptures (chrism tympanum, historic capitals), bears witness to its medieval heritage.

Inside, the church houses rich furniture: early 20th century stained glass windows signed by Louis Saint-Blancat, two 19th century bronze bells recast in 1953, and 17th and 18th century paintings. Among them was a portrait of Father Joseph (advisor of Richelieu) and a Virgin with the Child of 1762. Statues of plaster (Sacré-Cœur, Jeanne d'Arc) and a 19th-century marble altar complete this set.

Owned by the commune, the church is attached to the parish of Saint-Joseph-des-Barthes. Its history reflects local religious and architectural transformations, from its role as a medieval priory to its present status as a protected monument.

The sources mention inconsistencies in the winding up of the portal after its displacement, as well as liturgical changes (altitude "face to the people" created from an eighteenth century pulpit). Liturgical objects, such as a silver chalice of the seventeenth or an art deco ostensoir, underline its heritage importance in the Landes.

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