Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Sainte-Radegonde de Riantec, dedicated to Radegonde de Poitiers (wife of Clotaire I in the 6th century), dates back to the 11th century. This choice of patroness, rare in Brittany, could be explained by a mission from Poitiers, although this remains hypothetical. Every August 13th, the parish celebrates a procession towards the Saint-Radegonde fountain, whose water, alternately salty and sweet according to the tides, was considered to cure the children. A chapel of the True Cross, dated from the 17th century, also bears witness to the local cult of the Cross, shared with Poitiers.

The church was destroyed by an accidental fire on 23 January 1917 and rebuilt between October 1923 and May 1927 according to the plans of architect René Guillaume. The project followed the principles of the Bulletin of the Provincial Association of Architects (1912), focusing on a unified and accessible liturgical space. The Mauméjean workshop adorned the building in an art deco style: stained glass windows (including one evoking the 1917 fire), mosaics, frescoes (like that of the War 39-45), and an original Cross Road on the pillars of the nave. The stained glass windows, restored in 2006-2007, are surrounded by 15th and 18th century statues, including a Virgin of Mercy and a Catherine of Alexandria.

Among the notable elements are the kerantite tomb of canon Alain Le Blevec (rector from 1919 to 1941) and a tapestry of L-Arbre de Jessé, offered in 2018 by Daniel Cordeau, former lissier des Gobelins. The Saint-Radegonde fountain, located one kilometre from the village, remains a place of devotion linked to healing traditions. The cult of the Cross, present in Riantec as well as in Poitiers, is also manifested in a 17th century chapel, the True Cross, always visible on eponymous street.

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