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Origin and history

The Saint-Martin de Carpiquet church, located in the Calvados department in Normandy, is a Catholic building built between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries. It initially depended on the abbey of the Trinity of Caen and is placed under the invocation of Saint Martin. Its architecture combines Romanesque elements (such as the door in the middle of the hangar adorned with zigzags) and Gothic (the 15th century choir according to Arcisse de Caumont). The tower, massive and covered with a roof in a building, dates from the 14th or 15th century, while the bedside adopts a pentagonal shape.

Enlisted as historical monuments since 24 January 1927, the church suffered major damage during the Battle of Normandy, notably on 4 July 1944. The restorations carried out in the 1950s included the laying of three modern stained glass windows, made by the artist Chapuis, illustrating the life of Saint Martin. These stained glass windows replace destroyed elements, such as a ridge cross once located on the gable. The building, owned by the municipality, today preserves traces of its turbulent history, mixing medieval heritage and memory of the conflicts of the twentieth century.

Arcisse de Caumont, in his monumental Statistique du Calvados (1846), points out that the church has "some remarkable parts", including the double archivolt door and the imposing tower. The building, oriented east-southeast, reflects Norman architectural developments, from its Romanesque origins to Gothic additions. The contemporary stained glass windows, added after the war, bear witness to a desire to preserve both the local cult dedicated to Saint Martin and the memory of the destruction suffered.

The location of the church, north of the village of Carpiquet (rue de l'Église or Place Albert Marie), makes it a historical and religious landmark for the commune. Its early inscription (1927) among the protected monuments underlines its heritage importance, reinforced by its role in post-war reconstruction. Sources, such as the Mérimée base or Les Clochers de France, document its status as communal property and its openness to the public, although the practical details of the visit are not specified.

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