Saintes Cathedral

Rebuilt after the Hundred Years' War, St. Peter's Cathedral was one of the great flamboyant Gothic monuments in the West. In 1568, when it was not completely finished, its vaults were destroyed by Protestant troops. A massive bell tower and a flamboyant portal characterize the exterior of this church, built for the most part in the 15th century. Inside, Gothic unity and simplicity of a decoration confining to skinning.

About this building

On the site of the current cathedral, nothing remains of the first Christian building, nor of that of the sixth century. In the 11th century, the monument was burned down and rebuilt in the following century, under the impetus of Bishop Pierre de Confolens or Bishop Bernard, one of his successors. Henry II Plantagenet laid siege to Saintes in 1174, damaging the church, which was probably restored after. From this time remains only the dome of the southern brace. During the 13th and 14th centuries, developments followed (chapels, sacristy, library, etc.). At the end of the Hundred Years War, the bishops of Saintes (largely from the Rochechouart family) built a large building in flamboyant Gothic. They foresaw a three-ship hall-church. The lack of funds forced the diocese to use the sale of indulgences to ensure the continuation of the project. Construction began, around 1450, by the imposing bell-tower porch (which however never received its arrow). Then the plans changed, giving way to a more traditional church with a large nave lined with two side aisles with side chapels, all counterbaked outside by flying buttresses. In 1568, the Protestants ransacked the church (whose choir was not yet finished): the vaults of the nave and aisles collapsed. The reconstruction continued throughout the seventeenth century; nevertheless, the earlier plans were abandoned: including part of the chapels of the choir; the nave, deprived of its original height, received only a wooden frame.

Key Features

  • Architecture
  • Monuments

Visitors information

  • Parking within 250m
  • Non-accessible toilets in the building
  • Café within 500m

Other nearby buildings

Wikimedia Commons/G.Garitan

Sainte-Colombe Church

The church of Sainte-Colombe dates from the 14th century, but the present church owes much to reconstruction in the 15th century. Damaged during the French Wars of Religion, it was completely renovated in the 17th century. The church served as a place of worship for the Carmelites for part of the 19th century before being desecrated and converted into a warehouse for a regional cooperative in the early 20th century. Purchased and restored in 2000, it is the property of the Society of Saint Pius X.

Wikimedia Commons/Cobber17

Couvent des Jacobins

Founded at the beginning of the 13th century, the Jacobins convent was home to a community of Dominican monks until the Revolution. Sold as national property, the convent was finally transformed into a private house. At the end of the 19th century, the buildings were owned by Maurice Martineau, a cognac merchant. He devoted part of his time to building up an impressive library, which he bequeathed to the municipality on his death in 1928, together with the buildings of the former convent. The site became a municipal library ten years later.

Wikimedia Commons

Protestant church

The Protestant church, completed in 1906, replaced many pre-existing sanctuaries. A first temple was built at the beginning of the 17th century, outside the former walls of Saintes. Inaugurated in 1602, it was destroyed in 1685 after the publication of the Edict of Fontainebleau. The existence of a third temple is attested in 1802, the latter being used for worship until the beginning of the 20th century. The construction of the present building was entrusted to the Parisian architect Augustin Rey, whose project combines neo-Romanesque and neo-Byzantine influences.