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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The church of Saint John the Baptist of Castelnau-le-Lez, originally dedicated to Notre-Dame, was built at the end of the 12th century on the heights of the medieval village succeeding the Roman city of Sextantio, a key stage of the Via Domitia. She then depended on Maguelone's priory. Its Romanesque architecture, marked by the monspeliensis opus (alternated with light and dark stones), makes it a remarkable example of regional style. The semicircular bedside, adorned with archatures and cubic capital columns, dominates an elevated base due to the slope of the ground.

In the 14th century, the church was fortified in response to the troubles of the era: the walls were enhanced, with mâchicoulis (of which the consoles remain), and the current bell tower was built. The transition between the Romanesque part and the fortification is discreet, with a passage from a semicircular to pentagonal plane. The masons kept the Monspeliensis opus to harmonize the additions. Inside, a 13th century stand divides the first span, while two side chapels and a sacristy were later added against the north flank.

Ranked a historical monument in 1911, the church retains traces of its defensive and religious role. Its southern portal, in the middle of the circle, takes up the motif of the Monspeliensis opus on the tympanum and the piedroits. The bell tower, pierced by campanary bays, is surmounted by a later forged iron campanile. Major transformations (chapels, sacristy) date back to the 18th century, but the building remains an exceptional testimony of Languedoc Romanesque art and its adaptation to military needs.

Located near the Lez and the Place de la Liberté, in the historic centre of Castelnau-le-Lez (Priphery of Montpellier), the church embodies the medieval heritage of Occitanie. Its classification protects a building with a mix of spirituality, local history and architectural know-how, from the Romanesque foundations to the development of the following centuries.

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