Site de pèlerinage de Verdelais : Basilique Notre-Dame

English translation

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History

Church built in the 12th century by Grandmontine monks to house the miraculous statue of a Virgin and Child in wood. Ravaged in 1357 and 1562, the church is restored in the early 17th century and entrusted to Celestine monks. Creation of a transept. In the early 18th century, the west façade is remodelled. In 1838, the sanctuary returns to the Marists. From 1842 to 1875, enlargement works entrusted to architect Théodore Duphot. In 1924, the church is elevated to the rank of basilica following the importance of the pilgrimage.££Four elements make up this pilgrimage site: a votive cross of 1630; avenues leading to the basilica and the convent associated with it; the Way of the Cross which ends with a calvary; the Pas-de-la-Mule and the votive fountain. The pilgrimage is one of the oldest dedicated to the Virgin. It has continued into the 1950s, marked by two major periods, the 17th and 19th centuries. François Mauriac himself was an assiduous pilgrim. The avenues used by processions were remodelled in the 19th century to accommodate five to six thousand pilgrims. In the 19th century, numerous houses of religious congregations were established around the avenues for their use. The first station is a cross at the start of the avenues. Simple, it bears the date of 1630 as well as the coat of arms and cross of the Celestines installed in 1627. An esplanade was laid out in the 19th century to accommodate the crowds.££The main façade of the church currently bears four terracotta statues from the Virebent workshop of Toulouse. Inside, the nave is separated from the aisles by arcades. The stained glass windows of the chapels recall the history of Verdelais. The great west stained glass window of the nave, a work produced by the royal Sèvres manufactory, is a gift from Napoleon III in 1854. To the south, a Way of the Cross crosses the forest to reach the calvary built in the 17th century. The chapels of the fourteen stations, all similar, open to the west and east. Finally, located to the north-east of the site, is the miraculous fountain, rebuilt in the 1860s with the representation of the statue of the Virgin in the tree.