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Gironde, land of Romanesque art

Starting along with the great land-clearing projects initiated by the monasteries, construction of most of these religious edifices in the county continued from the 10th to the 13th century.
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Starting along with the great land-clearing projects initiated by the monasteries, construction of most of these religious edifices in the county continued from the 10th to the 13th century.
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Basilicas, cathedrals, abbeys, churches or simple chapels evoke with greater or lesser splendour the absolute hold that the spiritual powers had over medieval Europe.

Abbaye de Saint-Ferme
CDT 33 - Hubert Sion

A number of monasteries in Entre-Deux-Mers – La Sauve-Majeure, built in 1079, and Blasimon and Saint-Ferme, both founded around 1070 – brought them into being throughout the region, inviting villagers to take part in the construction of churches and priories. Monks and laymen built side by side, drawing inspiration from Saint-Onge edifices, as is evidenced by the richly decorated portals of the churches in Blasimon, Castelviel, Fronsac, Guîtres, Moulis and Petit-Palais, as well as that of the Sainte-Croix church in Bordeaux.

Gradually, time and mankind helped in the deterioration of mural paintings. There are some fine examples, however, still intact in the Saint-Sauveur church in Saint-Macaire and the Saint-Michel church in Le Vieux Lugo near Belin-Beliet.

Although Romanesque art predominates in Gironde, there are also a number of edifices illustrating the gothic style in all its magnificence, including Saint-Michel Cathedral in Bordeaux, Saint-Jean-Baptiste Cathedral in Bazas, the collegiate church in Uzeste – where Pope Clement V lies at rest – and Saint-Pierre church in La Réole.

The Reformation was also to leave its mark on the region’s religious architecture, especially in Bordeaux, where Notre-Dame church, built in the late 17th century, is an almost exact copy of the Church of the Gesu in Rome.

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