Church of Saint Peter of Romilly dans l'Eure

Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Church of Saint Peter of Romilly-la-Puthenaye, located in the Eure in Normandy, is a 16th century Catholic religious building, rebuilt after the Hundred Years War. Its pediment, decorated with a wooden portal with double vantals, overlooks the street of the Town Hall, and the remains of the old parish enclosure, including funeral monuments, are still visible on both sides.

The fourteen church windows, installed after the 1870 war, were the work of the Duhamel-Marette d'Evreux workshop. Despite the absence of a resident priest, the site hosted four annual offices, as well as weddings, funerals and heritage days. His remarkable furniture included a 15th century Virgin with Child and a wooden altarpiece.

On 17 April 2021, a fire caused by a short circuit in the bell mechanism destroyed the church: the structure and bell tower collapsed, and all the furniture was reduced to ashes. Only the outer walls resisted the sinister. The reconstruction, estimated at between 2 and 3 million euros, has benefited from a momentum of post-fire solidarity of Notre-Dame, with local and national political support.

The Heritage Foundation has launched a subscription, raising 32 000 euros in eight months, while tensions have arisen between the Mayor of Romilly-la-Puthenaye and the Departmental Council of the Eure concerning the promises of financial aid. In 2025, reconstruction work finally started, marking a key step in restoring this local heritage.

The church of Saint Peter, although not classified, illustrates the challenges of preserving rural religious buildings in France. Its recent history highlights the challenges of funding, citizen mobilization and institutional coordination to save a threatened heritage.

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