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Origin and history

The Assumption of Belleville, located in the Rhône department in Belleville-en-Beaujolais, is a religious building emblematic of Romanesque art. Founded in the 3rd quarter of the 12th century, it was erected between 1168 and 1179 under the impulse of Humbert III, Sire de Beaujeu, after his return from the Holy Land. Originally a Augustinian prioress raised to the rank of abbey in 1164, it housed the necropolis of the seigneuries of Beaujeu, with about fifteen tombs now disappeared.

In the 15th century, Éléonore de Beaufort-Turenne, wife of the last seigneur of Beaujeu, financed Gothic reshuffles, including the reconstruction of the choir and the elevation of the nave, contrasting with the original Romanesque style. Armored vault keys, decorated with the Beaujeu and Bourbon-Beaujeu weapons, testify to this stylistic transformation.

The Wars of Religion and the French Revolution severely damaged the abbey: cloister and tombs were destroyed, leaving only the abbey church to survive. In the 19th century, a major restoration was carried out by architect Tony Desjardins, who decorated the interior with medieval murals and painted the vaults. In 2004, the choir was redesigned by artist Goudji, combining stone and metal, while wooden stalls were added by Jacques Brac de La Perrière.

Ranked a historical monument in 1862, the abbey is distinguished by its imposing dimensions (63 m long, 28 m at the transept) and its Romanesque stylistic homogeneity, despite the Gothic additions. It preserves a frieze from the tombs of the Sires de Beaujeu and 19th century murals. Open daily, it remains an active place of worship and a major testimony of the Clunisian heritage, labeled in 2023.

The building illustrates the influence of religious orders (Augustinians, Templars) and local lords in medieval Beaujolais. Its history also reflects the political and religious upheavals that have marked the region, from its foundation to its modern restorations.

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