Église Saint-Pierre

English translation

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History

Church of the priory of Saint-Pierre which belonged to the abbey of Saint-Cybard of Angoulême (8th century). The Benedictines and then the Augustinian canons regular succeeded one another there in the 9th century. Decline was evident at the beginning of the 15th century. The pre-Romanesque edifice left some traces of small regular cubic masonry in the walls of the nave. A church with Romanesque façade was built in the 12th century. The façade was replaced in the 19th century by an elevation with arcading in neo-Romanesque style. In the 13th century, a square crypt and a choir with flat chevet were added to the previous edifice. The Romanesque bell tower was surmounted by a slender storey. After the fire in the vaults in 1562, the church was restored in the 17th century. A chapel was built to the north of the choir. The nave was revaulted in brick in 1847-1849. At the same period, the choir was restored by the architect Demenieux who reestablished the great opening. In 1874-1875, E. Warin built the south chapel and a sacristy. The edifice is of rectangular plan. The nave is vaulted with groin vaults and the choir with rib vaults. The square bay of the bell tower, joined to the third bay of the nave on the north side, is under a dome on pendentives. The crypt is divided into four compartments from a central pillar. It is vaulted with ribs and preserves wall paintings.