Église Saint-Martin

English translation

The text above is the record as published by the Ministère de la Culture, in French. The English below is a machine translation made by TreeAlive, not by the Ministère de la Culture; it has not been checked by a person. Where the two differ, the original is the record. Report a translation error: privacy@treealive.com

History

The origin of the building is a priory built shortly after the stay there of Saint Martin in the 4th century. The church, which is situated on the banks of the Kilienne, is an abbey church which also served as a parish church. The church of Saint-Martin was rebuilt in the second half of the 18th century after being victims of a flood. The priory buildings partly disappeared in the early 19th century, to be progressively replaced by new buildings. The bell tower had been rebuilt for the first time in 1532, following a fire. Following the flood, it collapsed in 1766, and was rebuilt in 1773, as indicated by the date of the keystone above the door. This is a reuse from the 16th century also bearing the date of the first reconstruction. To avoid any problem in case of another flood, the reconstruction was done by raising it on a foundation of sandstone topped with a few courses of brick. The nave and choir were rebuilt before the bell tower, in 1761, also by raising them. The interior decor was redone in the second half of the 19th century. In 1858-1859, important restoration work and the refitting of a vault are executed by François Detroye, a plasterer from Lille, on drawings by architect Alcide Carré. The floor of the central aisle was itself redone in 1913, in small cabochons of ceramic stoneware. The stained glass windows were realised by Félix Courmont, master glazier at Arras, between 1868 and 1870, in a style evoking the 13th century.