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Origin and history

The church Saint-André de Lherm, located in the Haute-Garonne department in Occitanie, finds its origins in a construction initiated on 15 September 1527 under the impulse of Canon Jean Vacquier (chapter of Saint-Sernin) and Consul Nicolas Garric. The lease in besogne is signed with the master masons of Toulouse Pierre Monestié and Jean Fauré. It could rest on the remains of an old church of Sainte-Marie, attested as early as 1101 in the Cartular of Lézat-sur-Lèze, although no archive confirms it formally. The material traces and reports of looting by the Huguenots in the 16th century suggest a turbulent history, typical of the religious conflicts of the time.

In the 19th century, the building, in an advanced state of disrepair since 1810, benefited from major restorations from 1818. Between 1825 and 1900, work radically changed its appearance: the addition of side chapels (1847-1860), the construction of a toulous bell tower of 33.60 metres (1843-1848) by the entrepreneur Boué on the plans of the surveyor Dominique Bayard, and the decoration of the vaults by the Pedoya brothers in 1848. The stained glass windows, made by Louis-Victor Gesta between 1873 and 1879, were damaged during the explosion of the Fauga powder factory in 1944, then restored by a local subscription.

Among the remarkable elements, a 14th century bell, classified as a historical monument in 1987, bears an inscription in single capital letters: " XPS : REX : VENIT : IN PACE : DEUS : HOMO : FACTUS EST". Frozen around 1970, it was loaned to the Campanary Museum of L-Isle-Jourdain before returning to the church in 1993, after a petition from the inhabitants. The building, of southern Gothic style, also preserves 14th century frescoes in a Romanesque chapel, as well as carved oak stalls (17th century).

The church was finally classified as a historical monument in 1993, recognizing its heritage value as a medieval heritage and neo-classical transformation. The latest restorations, such as that of the roof in 2009, testify to its continued maintenance by the municipality, owner of the premises.

Its role in the local community has evolved over the centuries: a place of Catholic worship, it also embodies resilience to conflicts (Religion wars, Second World War) and identity pride, as evidenced by civic initiatives to preserve its treasures, such as the Maria bell or the Gesta stained glass windows.

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