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Origin and history

The church of Sainte-Madeleine in Davron originates in the chapel of the castle, given between 1117 and 1130 by Nivard de Poissy at the Benedictine Abbey of Notre-Dame de Josaphat (near Chartres) to establish a priory. The western portal, typical of the ebrased Romanesque style with columns and voussures, dates from the first quarter of the 12th century. This portal, with its architectural features, is part of the tradition of rural religious buildings of the time.

The unique nave, covered with a lambrased false vault in the middle of the fifth century, dates back to the first half of the sixteenth century, as its masonries and visible elements of its structure testify. The choir, vaulted dogives and finished with a circular apse, was rebuilt around 1642 by Claude de Bullion, Superintendent of Finance of Louis XIII. The latter, who acquired the seigneury of Wideville in 1630, placed his coat of arms there, marking his influence on the building. This choir, a rare example of rural religious construction in Île-de-France at the classical age, bears witness to the persistence of Gothic forms until the 17th century.

The bell tower, raised on three levels and topped by a pavilion, was probably built under the impulse of Claude de Bullion. It dominates the southern facade, increasing the visibility of the church. Later, the lateral chapels, forming a false transep, were added: the southern chapel dates from the second half of the 17th or 18th century, while the northern chapel, from an indefinite period, underwent several changes. Their dogid vaults were probably added in the 19th century. The ensemble became parish church in 1690, after the destruction of the convent buildings around 1830.

The Benedictine Priory, founded in 1117, initially depended on the Abbey of Jehoshaphat. The transformation of the Castral chapel into a parish church reflects the religious and social changes in the region, including the secularization of ecclesiastical property and the adaptation of buildings to local needs. The inscription of the entire church as a Historic Monument in 2021 underscores its heritage importance, mixing Romanesque, late Gothic and rural classic heritage.

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