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Origin and history

The church Our Lady of Therondels finds its origins in a monastery of women founded around the year 1000 by Gilbert III of Carlat, Viscount of Carlat. This monastery, originally endowed by clergymen of Rodez in the 12th century, was attached in 1185 to St Peter's Abbey of Blesle by a papal bubble of Lucius II. The nuns, from the nobility, left Thérondels in 1353 after the abolition of the priory, but kept certain incomes under the authority of the Abbess of Blesle.

The present church, built in the 12th century, was rebuilt in the 15th century by the addition of chapels and the enlargement of a north side. Its early bell tower collapsed in 1600, and the building was classified as a historic monument in 1975. The current bell tower, characteristic of rouergate architecture, dates from the 19th century. The abbey of Blesle, on which Thérondels depended, was abolished at the Revolution, and his goods were sold as national goods.

The church retained notable Romanesque elements, such as cul-de-lampe and carved capitals. Its nine-sided apse, cul-de-four vaulted, and three-span nave testify to its medieval importance. The priests of Thérondels were appointed by the abbess of Blesle, and the priory was to finance the church repairs, the ecclesiastical decimes, and the congruous portions of the servants.

The monastery of Thérondels, though modest, played a role in local religious life, linked to the influence of the bishopric of Rodez and the noble families of the region. After the Revolution, the church became communal property and was preserved for its architectural and historical heritage, illustrating the evolution of religious buildings in Rouergue between the Middle Ages and the modern era.

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