The collegiate church of Saint-Mexme was the main religious building in Chinon up to the Revolution. It was originally built in the 5th century on the site of a monastery founded by Saint Mexme, a disciple of Saint Martin. The building was entirely rebuilt, enlarged and embellished between the 10th and 15th centuries, and became a major pilgrimage site. The building was deconsecrated following the Revolution and was left abandoned; in 1817 the transept bell tower collapsed, taking with it the east side of the building. The remaining parts (the west block and central nave) were converted into a school.
The school moved out at the beginning of the 1980s and major work was carried out to restore the original character of the building. Numerous fragments of wall paintings from the 11th to the 15th century were discovered. The church is only open for guided visits organized by the “Ville d’art et d’histoire” department.
References:The first written record of church in Danmark locality date back to the year 1291. Close to the church are several stones with a Christian text and cross inscribed. The oldest parts of the present red-brick church are from the 1300s. In the late 1400s the church was enlarged to the appearance it has today. The church has been modified both internally and externally several times, among other things after the fires in 1699 and 1889. There are lot of well-preserved mural paintings in the walls.