Parthenay-le-Vieux - Saint-Pierre

Gédouin and Ebo, Seigneurs of Parthenay, invited the monks from "La Chaise-Dieu" in the Auvergne (some 500kms south east), to establish a priory here in 1092. The parish church, that had existed here already before, got replaced then by the church seen now in the early 11th century. Despite the monks roots in the Auvergne the facade is done in the style, common to the area, so they obviously employed master builders with regional experiences.

During the Wars of Religion the priory got ransacked and the monks had to leave. The church did survive comparably undamaged, but the entrance to the chapter house, seen here, is all what is left of the priory´s cloister. The arches were hidden in the stonewalls, but discovered in 1928.

The church and the remaining buildings are all privately owned, but the church is not locked! Merci beaucoup!