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Origin and history

The Saint-Barthélemy church of Castelnau-de-Lévis, located in the Tarn in Occitanie, is a Gothic building built between the 13th and 15th centuries. It replaces an ancient Romanesque building with remains in the first left side chapel. Its fortified bell tower, characteristic of Albige architecture, served as a defensive door for the medieval village then called the Puy de Bonnafous. This mechanism illustrates the strategic importance of churches in local protection systems during the Middle Ages, especially during the crusade against the Albigois.

Inside, the church houses the burial of the family of Castelnau, dating from the 17th century, showing its connection to the local aristocracy. The building was listed as a historical monument by order of 18 June 1927 for its remarkable architecture and furnishings. Among these are an 18th-century altarpiece, a 15th-century statue of Saint Barthélemy, and several reliquaries, as well as paintings from the 16th to 19th centuries, protected between 1993 and 2016. These elements reflect the artistic and religious evolution of the region over centuries.

The church is organized around a rectangular plan preceded by a square bell tower, supported by round pillars and opened by broken arches. The second floor of the bell tower, illuminated by twin bays, recalls southern Gothic influences. Major decoration works in the last quarter of the 19th century partially altered its interior appearance, while maintaining its medieval structure. Today, the building remains an emblematic example of Albige's religious and military heritage, linked to the turbulent history of Occitanie.

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