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Origin and history

Saint-Simeon Church, dedicated to Saint Simeon Stylite, is a Catholic building located in L'Huisserie, Mayenne. Dating from the 11th century, it underwent major changes in the 19th century, including the addition of two side chapels in 1837 and the construction of a bell tower in 1838. Originally, it included only one nave with a wooden vault and a contourable choir.

During the French Revolution, the church was occupied in 1794 by a republican cantonment and burned by the caulians. In 1804, funds were allocated for his repair after the fire. The 1906 inventory, marked by anti-Republican tensions, was broken into, leaving a damaged door until it was replaced.

During the restoration of 1977, eleven burials dated from the 15th and 16th centuries were discovered in the choir, accompanied by pots of fire and urns containing incense ashes. These graves would belong to priests and benefactors of the parish. The Romanesque church presents a Latin cross plan with a flat bedside and a bell tower.

The nave, dating back to the 11th century, preserves 16th century granite baptismal fonts, originally designed for immersion baptisms. The choir, rebuilt in the 19th century, houses a contemporary altar in black marble and a reliquary statuette of Saint Simeon. Two 18th-century altarpieces dedicated to Saint Julien and the Virgin adorn the transepts.

The bell tower contains three bells christened in 1881, the heaviest of which, Thérèse Françoise Zenaïde, weighs 1,500 kg. These bells, recast or created in the 19th century, bear the names of their godfathers. The church, restored in 2001, has found facades close to their original appearance.

Local traditions, such as processions with a relic of True Cross brought in 1708 or songs of complacent before a cross, testify to its central role in community life. Today, it remains an active place of worship and a symbol of the Mayan heritage.

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