St-Léger (Alise-Sainte-Reine)
Saint-Léger in Alise-Sainte-Reine (Département Côte-d'Or ) at the foot of the Celtic oppidum Alesia is one of the oldest Romanesque churches in Burgundy .
architecture
The building was originally a three-nave, flat-roofed basilica with a choir tower and apse . The side aisles have been lost and the arcades have been walled up so that only a single-aisle hall remains. The core of the south wall of the nave dates back to the Merovingian period (7th century), while the north wall dates from the Carolingian era. The tower dates from the 12th century (the Merovingian-Carolingian complex was originally without a tower). Another slate-covered bell tower was built in 1866, but it fell into disrepair in 1991 and had to be removed.
Building history
The church was built before 720. It was burned down during the Norman invasions and half rebuilt in the 9th or 10th centuries. An inscription from 1780, placed above the door, documents restoration work on the building.
The floor plan is that of the old Christian basilicas: a nave with a flat wooden ceiling, an apse flanked by two apsidioles . These contained the baptistery of the time in the south and a sacristy with the liturgical implements in the north . The northern absidiol with its 2 m thick walls is probably the oldest part of today's church. Only a few remains of the southern absidiol are visible on the outer wall. The apse itself and the south facade were rebuilt after a fire caused by the Norman invasions.
History of the building
In 1965 the church was restored from donations. A new altar was erected and an electric heater was installed. The old bell tower from the 12th century has been restored and repaired.
Web links
- The Church of St Leger. Commune d'Alise-Sainte-Reine
Coordinates: 47 ° 32 ′ 10.2 " N , 4 ° 29 ′ 42.6" E