Vestiges du castrum et de la chapelle Saint-Barthélemy

English translation

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History

Montauroux appears in texts in the 11th century at the same time as a first castrum presumably developed on the summit of the village. The fortification movement which also affected Montauroux in the 14th century completed the defensive system. The sources do not allow us to establish the form and extent of the castrum but do attest to the presence of a first castle chapel already dedicated to Saint-Barthélemy. During the Wars of Religion at the end of the 16th century, the stronghold of Montauroux was in the hands of the League supported by the House of Savoy. The Duke of Épernon, who came to the region to defend the interests of the King of France, launched himself in 1592 into the conquest of the stronghold. The castrum counted, according to witnesses, between 5 and 18 companies of foot soldiers. The Duke achieved his aims. He harshly repressed the soldiers who held it and had the castrum demolished. This event is at the origin of the current configuration of the historical site which remains nonetheless invested by the presence of the ruined chapel of Saint-Barthélemy as well as by the cemetery which remained in use until 1909. The renewal of the chapel came about thanks to the confraternity of white penitents who, in the early 1630s, found themselves too cramped in the parish church. The confraternity members set their sights on the chapel of Saint-Barthélemy which was restored and enlarged between 1634 and 1639 by the master mason Vincens Gastaud. Inside, the wall surfaces are simply whitewashed with lime. It is probable that the confraternity members reused the old altarpiece and resized it to the measurements of the altarpiece in gypseries which was created in the 1640s-1650s. In the middle of the 18th century, access to the chapel was moved to the north façade in response to the problem of access through the cemetery. The other matter of this century concerns the creation of the interior décor of the chapel. This undertaking took place in at least two phases. The creation of easel paintings (cycle on the Mysteries of the Rosary or Life of the Virgin) would be the first milestone in 1743 or more probably in 1753. This set of painted canvases came to punctuate painted wainscoting on the lateral wall surfaces and on the barrel vault, created in the second half of the 18th century (beginning of the reign of Louis XVI). Jean-Paul de Lombard (marquis de Gourdon), whose arms are represented, could be the author. Like all confraternities, the penitents of Montauroux disappeared at the Revolution. However, the use which the revolutionary institutions made of the place undoubtedly preserved it from sale as national property. After the Revolution the confraternity reconstituted itself. In 1815, the penitents again modified access to their chapel which was henceforth on the south façade. This undertaking required significant earthwork. The clearing of rocks in the area south of the chapel allowed the creation of a vast platform which was fitted out as a threshing floor in 1825-26. The confraternity disappeared definitively in 1854-55.