Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Saint-Pierre de Bazoches-sur-Vesles, located in the department of Aisne, is a religious building built mainly in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Its flat bedside choir and transept date back to the third quarter of the 12th century, while the sides, opened on the nave by broken arcades, were added in the 13th century. The Western gate, curved and dating back to 1660, as well as the northern pillars of the nave, transformed into rectangular massifs, testify to subsequent modifications in the seventeenth century.

Prior to the French Revolution, the church depended on the diocese of Soissons and served as the capital of a dean of the Archdiacony of Tardenois. His collator was the Benedictine priory next to Saint-Thibaut. During the Revolution, in 1791 and 1792, it housed the assemblies of the district of Bazoches, reflecting its central role in local life.

The building suffered major destruction in August 1918, when the German army retreated, with collapsed walls and vaults. Its restoration, led by the chief architect of the Historic Monuments Lucien Sallez and executed by Robert Chaleil, lasted from 1921 to 1932. The work was carried out successively on the lower sides (1921-1929), the nave (1928-1929), the choir (1929) and the transept (1921-1932). The church was classified as historical monuments on December 10, 1919.

Architecturally, the church presents a Latin cross plan with a square sanctuary completed by an apse. The transept, vaulted with warhead crosses, and the square choir share Gothic characteristics of transition, while the nave, capped, retains Romanesque elements. Covering materials vary between slate for the nave, the lower side and the bell tower, and flat tiles for the choir and the eastern sections of the transept.

The size of the building is notable: 28.20 metres long (including apse), 18.65 metres wide at the transept, and 13.15 metres for the nave with its collaterals. These elements underline the historical and architectural significance of this monument, both a place of worship and a witness to the upheavals of its time.

External links