Cathédrale Saint-Maurice
ChurchHidden Treasure
Cathédrale Saint-Maurice, located in Angers (Maine-et-Loire), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Church
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Angers, Maine-et-Loire, Pays de la Loire
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 47.4706, -0.5549
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00108866
A jewel of Plantagenet Gothic art, Saint-Maurice Cathedral in Angers captivates visitors with its nave featuring vaulted ceilings that are unique in Europe, and its exceptional collection of stained glass windows spanning eight centuries.
History
Standing on a rocky spur overlooking the River Maine, Saint-Maurice Cathedral in Angers is one of the most unusual monuments in Western France. Far from the usual verticality of the great Gothic cathedrals, it reveals an architecture like no other, the fruit of a regional genius known as the Plantagenet or Angevin Gothic style. Its domed vaults, domed like domes and stretched over a remarkably wide nave, create an enveloping, almost Mediterranean space that surprises and seduces as soon as you step into the nave. What makes Saint-Maurice truly unique is the layered richness of its works of art. Stained glass windows from the twelfth to the twentieth centuries bathe its windows in a colourful light of rare intensity. The twelfth-century Romanesque medallions are among the oldest in France, offering a palette of blues and reds of striking depth. Tapestries, wall paintings from the 14th and 15th centuries and the cathedral treasury complete a heritage collection of exceptional coherence and density. The western façade, framed by three towers, the central one of which features a finely sculpted portal, prepares visitors for the solemnity of the interior. The sculpted tympanums, archivolts and colonnettes make up a remarkably legible medieval iconographic programme, where saints, angels and prophets converse in stone. Visiting Saint-Maurice also means immersing yourself in the historic heart of Angers, just a stone's throw from the Château des Ducs and the Doutre district. The cathedral is the ideal starting point for a day out exploring the city. For families, medieval history buffs or photographers in search of light filtered through the stained glass, it offers an unforgettable aesthetic and spiritual experience.
Architecture
Saint-Maurice cathedral is a masterpiece of the Plantagenet Gothic style, also known as Angevin Gothic, of which it is the most accomplished expression. It is designed as a cathedral with a single nave, no aisles and an unusual width of around 16 metres, giving it a spatial scale rarely seen in French medieval religious architecture. The Angevin vaulting, whose keystones rise to more than 25 metres and generously extend beyond the double arches, creates oval domes of airy elegance, diffusing a soft, even light throughout the nave. The western façade, flanked by three Romanesque towers, the two side towers of which frame a richly sculpted central portal, is striking for its power and balance. The tympanum of the portal, dedicated to the glory of Christ in majesty surrounded by the Tetramorph, is a precious example of late Romanesque sculpture in Anjou. The high, generously-sized windows are filled with stained glass dating from the twelfth to the twentieth centuries, forming an open-air stained glass museum of inestimable heritage value. Inside, round pillars with foliage capitals, tiers-point arches and engaged columns make up a soberly majestic two-storey elevation. The slightly raised choir is enclosed by 18th-century panelling, while the ambulatory houses radiating chapels adorned with remarkably fresh 14th- and 15th-century murals. The dominant materials used are white Anjou tuffeau, a soft limestone that is both resistant and easy to carve, giving the building a special luminosity.
Related Figures
Saint Maurice — martyr légionnaire romain, patron de la cathédrale, dont le culte est à l'origine de la dédicace de l'édificeFoulques Nerra — comte d'Anjou (972-1040), grand bâtisseur dont le mécénat préfigure les reconstructions romanes du siteHenri II Plantagenêt — roi d'Angleterre et comte d'Anjou, sous le règne duquel le style gothique angevin s'impose à Saint-Maurice au XIIe siècleGuillaume de Beaumont — évêque d'Angers au XIIIe siècle, acteur clé de l'achèvement du chœur gothiqueRené d'Anjou — duc d'Anjou (1409-1480), grand mécène des arts dont l'influence enrichit le trésor et les tapisseries de la cathédraleEugène Viollet-le-Duc — inspecteur général des Monuments historiques, dont les préconisations ont guidé les premières restaurations de l'édifice au XIXe siècle
Tags
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Cathédrale Saint-Maurice located?
Cathédrale Saint-Maurice is located in Angers, Maine-et-Loire department, Pays de la Loire region, France.
When was Cathédrale Saint-Maurice built?
Cathédrale Saint-Maurice dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Cathédrale Saint-Maurice open to visitors?
Cathédrale Saint-Maurice is currently closed to visitors.