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Origin and history

Notre-Dame-du-Mûrier Chapel is a Roman Catholic chapel in Batz-sur-Mer, in the Loire-Atlantique department. Its name, often associated with a local legend evoking a shipwrecked man guided by a statue of the Virgin in a mulberry tree, derives in reality from the Latin muria (salting water or marsh), reflecting the economic importance of the saline in the region. The building, of flamboyant Gothic style, was rebuilt in the middle of the 15th century after an epidemic of plague ravaged Brittany, pushing the inhabitants to make a vow to rebuild it in exchange for their protection.

The construction of the chapel was financed by the indulgences granted by Pope Eugene IV in 1442, at the request of the Duke of Brittany John V. Local resources, although boosted by the flourishing salt trade, proved insufficient, requiring these external aid. The building, completed in 1496, is distinguished by its original three-ship plan, separated by columns and divided into two equal parts by arches-diaphragms. It was never vaulted, but covered with a girdled frame, and presented innovative lighting thanks to two rows of passing skylights, an architectural rarity.

The chapel was a major pilgrimage place for the inhabitants of the Gueranda peninsula, linked to Marian devotion and local prosperity from the salt marshes. Its architecture, marked by southern Breton influences (especially from Quimper and Vannes), also reflects the role of Jean de Kerguz, Benedictine monk of Landévennec and prior of Batz, in the quality of its construction. Despite its completion in 1478, allowing worship and burials, the chapel suffered minor deteriorations in the 17th and 18th centuries, such as the repair of stained glass windows or the partial walling of the glass mistress.

The French Revolution transformed the chapel into a hall of the municipal council, before it was returned to worship after the Concordat, without regaining its original function. In 1819, a hurricane ripped off its roof, leaving the building in ruins. Ranked a historic monument in 1862, it was the subject of restoration projects in the 20th century, notably by architect Charles Chaussepied in 1893, but these were only partially realized (conservation work in 1902 and 1933). Today, its remains bear witness to a remarkable architectural and religious heritage, linked to the maritime and salicier history of the region.

The origin of the chapel dates back to a dedication associated with a statue of the Virgin discovered in a mulberry tree, according to an oral tradition. The Duke John V, in a petition to the pope in 1442, already emphasized the local devotion to this ruined sanctuary, justifying its reconstruction. The construction site, contemporary of that of the nearby Saint-Guénolé church (1460-1470), benefited from the economic prosperity of the peninsula, drawn from salt. In 1496, a papal brief gave a hundred days of indulgence to donors contributing to its reparation, marking its continuing importance.

The exterior architecture of the chapel, in large granite apparatus, presents a western facade rhythmic by foothills and a monumental portal with braided and garbled. A bell tower named the gable, while a circular staircase tower, with an octagonal arrow, occupied the southwest corner. The well-kept lateral elevations included accolade doors and passing skylights, some of which still retain their flamboyant reamping. The flat bedside, framed by foothills, suggests the traces of a walled bay, once divided into lancettes. Despite its present state, the chapel remains a homogeneous and early example of the use of arcs with penetration in southern Brittany.

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