Église priorale Sainte-Croix

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

According to legend, a monastery dedicated to the Virgin is established on the banks of the Loire in the 7th century, then destroyed by the Barbarians. In the middle of the 11th century, the bishop of Auxerre and the count of Nevers entrust to Hugues, abbot of Cluny, the foundation of a priory at la Charité. This first priory of Cluny abbey is consecrated in 1107, playing an important role as a stopping point on the route to Compostela, leading to the development and fortification of the town around the monastery. The major campaigns of construction are situated in the late 15th century with the lodging of the prior and the gatehouse; and in the 17th and 18th centuries according to the criteria of classicism and grandeur of monastic architecture of this period. Decline announces itself in the 16th century with the system of commenda, and especially the Wars of Religion, la Charité becoming a Protestant stronghold. On 31 July 1559, a fire destroys a large part of the prioral church and the conventional buildings. The separation between the spiritual domain, with the claustral prior, and the temporal domain, entrusted to lay people, accelerates the decline of the priory. Activity ceases in 1790 and the entire domain is seized and divided into private lots. Located on the route of Saint-Jacques de Compostela, the church Sainte-Croix was built in the 12th century. The nave of this church collapsed in the 17th century (the remains of the north side aisle are integrated into private properties and did not benefit from the classification of 1840; they were registered in 1927).