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Origin and history

The Saint-Victor-et-Sainte-Madeleine church of Chastel-Marlhac, located in the Cantal, is an emblematic building of the auvergnat Romanesque style, marked by Gothic transformations. Built in the 12th century, it was modified in the 15th century under the influence of the abbey of Blesle, on which it depended as a priory of noble nuns. His Romanesque porch, typical of the Haute-Auvergne, shares similarities with those of Sauvat or Salers, while his choir and side chapels adopt a Gothic style, with dogive vaults and broken arches.

In 1185, a pontifical bubble confirmed its attachment to the Benedictine abbey of Blesle (High-Loire). In the 14th century, the priory was gathered at the convent of Blesle, leading to the departure of nuns. The choir and chapels, rebuilt in the 15th century under the abbatiats of Marie le Loup de Beauvoir (1427–1447) and Isabelle le Loup de Beauvoir (1447–1481), incorporate re-used novel elements, such as carved capitals. The nave, initially vaulted in a cradle, remains unfinished.

The French Revolution marked a violent turning point: in 1794, the citizen Chou-fleur Roux, a revolutionary commander, ordered the destruction of the bell tower and the burning of statues to punish the inhabitants accused of ringing the tocsin. The peasants, forced to attend the ruin, mourn the loss of their place of worship, according to the accounts of the time. The bell tower was rebuilt in 1822, bearing this date.

Ranked a historical monument in 1963, the church preserves traces of its medieval and revolutionary past. His term, originally dedicated to St.Madeleine, later enriched St. Victor. The building thus combines religious history, Romanesque and Gothic architecture, and memory of political upheavals.

Today, the church is distinguished by its massive porch with palmette decorations, its carved caps (animals, masks) in the chapels, and its Romanesque baptismal tank. The Gothic niches of the lateral chapels, surmounted by medieval inscriptions, bear witness to the stylistic transition between the two periods of construction.

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