Collegiate Church of St. Mexme, Chinon, France

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:

Chinon Tourism

User Reviews

Ehrenboger Caroline (3 years ago)

CHRISTOPHE MATHIEUX (3 years ago)

Chanel Koehl (3 years ago)
c'est juste magnifique

Thomas Dorsata (4 years ago)
Souvent fermée mais superbe.

J & H Logis-Saint-Mexme (5 years ago)
A voir pour ses fresques et ses vitraux Collégiale Saint-Mexme 11e 15e 21e siècles Peintures murales médiévales vitraux contemporains Medieval Wall Paintings Contemporary Stained Glass Ouverture 2016 visite guidée tous les mercredis du 1er juillet au 31 août à 17h30 Départ à l'Office de Tourisme 1 rue Rabelais Tarif Plein 4€70 Réduit 2€50 Gratuit pour les moins de 12 ans

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Photo from Flickr, copyright levaletfrancois

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Château de Falaise

Château de Falaise is best known as a castle, where William the Conqueror, the son of Duke Robert of Normandy, was born in about 1028. William went on to conquer England and become king and possession of the castle descended through his heirs until the 13th century when it was captured by King Philip II of France. Possession of the castle changed hands several times during the Hundred Years' War. The castle was deserted during the 17th century. Since 1840 it has been protected as a monument historique.

The castle (12th–13th century), which overlooks the town from a high crag, was formerly the seat of the Dukes of Normandy. The construction was started on the site of an earlier castle in 1123 by Henry I of England, with the 'large keep' (grand donjon). Later was added the 'small keep' (petit donjon). The tower built in the first quarter of the 12th century contained a hall, chapel, and a room for the lord, but no small rooms for a complicated household arrangement; in this way, it was similar to towers at Corfe, Norwich, and Portchester, all in England. In 1202 Arthur I, Duke of Brittany was King John of England's nephew, was imprisoned in Falaise castle's keep. According to contemporaneous chronicler Ralph of Coggeshall, John ordered two of his servants to mutilate the duke. Hugh de Burgh was in charge of guarding Arthur and refused to let him be mutilated, but to demoralise Arthur's supporters was to announce his death. The circumstances of Arthur's death are unclear, though he probably died in 1203.

In about 1207, after having conquered Normandy, Philip II Augustus ordered the building of a new cylindrical keep. It was later named the Talbot Tower (Tour Talbot) after the English commander responsible for its repair during the Hundred Years' War. It is a tall round tower, similar design to the towers built at Gisors and the medieval Louvre.Possession of the castle changed hands several times during the Hundred Years' War. The castle was deserted during the 17th century. Since 1840, Château de Falaise has been recognised as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture.

A programme of restoration was carried out between 1870 and 1874. The castle suffered due to bombardment during the Second World War in the battle for the Falaise pocket in 1944, but the three keeps were unscathed.

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