. The Roman city of Limonum, later Poitiers (Vienne), became the capital of the area corresponding to the tribal lands of the Pictones, who had been conquered by Rome in the first century B.C. Early Christians appeared in the city in the 3rd and 4th centuries, and their first great bishop was St. Hilary (d. 368). A second important early Christian was St. Radegund, the wife of Clotar I, who founded the monastery of Sainte-Croix after retiring to Poitiers ca. 550. It was at Moussais near Poitiers in 732 that Charles Martel met and defeated a Muslim raiding party that was pushing northward into France after having conquered Spain. The advance of the Muslims into southern France threatened the Aquitanians, whose duke, Eudes, having been crushed at Bordeaux, appealed to Charles for aid. The Muslims burned the church of Saint-Hilaire but were decimated by the Frankish cavalry and were eventually chased by Charles Martel and his army back across the Pyrénées. Poitiers and much of Aquitaine passed into Frankish hands as a result.
One of the most important historical, religious, and intellectual centers in France, Poitiers is exceptionally rich
Poitiers (Vienne), Baptistry of Saint-Jean, east side. Photograph courtesy of Whitney S.Stoddard.
in monuments, the oldest of which are the hypogeum of Abbot Mellébaude in the Faubourg Saint-Saturnin (7th c.) and the former baptistery of Saint-Jean, a 7th-century Merovingian structure on 4th-century foundations (preRomanesque narthex, Romanesque frescoes). The majority of the city’s extant churches date from the Romanesque period.
The plans of both Saint-Hilaire-le-Grand and Sainte-Radegonde were determined in part (elevated sanctuary above the crypt, ambulatory, and radiating chapels) by their early prominence as pilgrimage shrines. The oldest portions of the church of Saint-Hilaire-le-Grand (dedicated 1049), built over the tomb of the celebrated bishop, are the lower part of the once isolated bell tower and the transept. The present chevet and eastern-transept apsidioles followed, the tower was incorporated into the structure, and the width of the original nave (alternating columns and piers) was reduced by the erection of additional supports to carry the curious stone cupolas. Remarkable are the vaulting of the tower, the carved corbels and metopes, the 11th-century capitals, and the frescoes of the bishops of Poitiers (12th c.). The crypt (ambulatory, three radiating chapels) of the church of Sainte-Radegonde (1099) houses the venerated tomb of the queen of the Franks. A 13th-century aisleless nave with Angevin vaults links the Romanesque chevet (carved capitals) with the majestic tower porch. The present portal is Flamboyant Gothic; within the porch are two reliefs (Christ blessing and a seated St. Radegund or the Virgin). Stained-glass windows include episodes from the life of St. Radegund.
Despite its name, the former collegiate church of Notre-Dame-la-Grande (late 1 1th-early 12th c.) is relatively small, yet its lavishly sculptured screen façade and harmoniously proportioned crossing tower are among the most famous in western France. In typically “Poitevin” format, the pronounced horizontals of the three-storied façade are framed by vertical clusters of columns supporting open-arcaded corner turrets with conical roofs. A frieze of Old and New
Poitiers, Notre-Dame-la-Grande, façade. Photograph courtesy of Whitney S.Stoddard.
Testament scenes and personages, evoking the Fall and the Incarnation, fills the area above the three elaborately decorated arches of the lower story. Between the corbel tables, a large central window separates two rows of superimposed arcades containing Apostles and bishops. Within the almond-shaped mandorla of the gable are the Triumphant Christ with symbols of the four Evangelists, the sun, and the moon. The beautiful arcading, the richly carved radiating voussoirs, and the ornamental masonry of gable, roofs, and crossing tower enrich the decorative effect. The remains of Romanesque frescoes decorate both the choir and the small crypt.
The cathedral of Saint-Pierre (begun ca. 1162) is a “hall church,” with ribbed vaults and flat chevet enclosing three apsidioles, whose construction spans several centuries. The tripartite façade with a central rose, like the tympana of the portals, reflects northern Gothic influence. The cathedral contains fine stained-glass windows, the most outstanding of which is a magnificent Crucifixion (ca. 1150–70), with the Ascension above and the crucifixion of St. Peter below. The choirstalls with carved misericords are among the oldest in France (ca. 1235–57).
The former abbey church of Saint-Jean de Montierneuf (1076–96) was mutilated following the partial collapse of the crossing tower in 1640. The disposition of the original chevet, similar to that of Saint-Hilaire-le-Grand, is nevertheless striking in its amplitude: apse with ambulatory and radiating chapels, a broad transept with eastern apsidioles. The superstructure of the choir is Gothic.
All that remains of the Romanesque church of Saint-Porchaire that housed the relics of the 6th-century abbot of Saint-Hilaire-le-Grand is the impressive three-storied tower porch (11th c.) built against a primitive façade. The arcading of the porch rests on sculptured capitals; above the portal is a relief of Christ in Majesty surrounded by the four Evangelists and two angels. The body of the church is 16th-century. In the tower hangs the old bell of the university, founded in 1431.
Now a book depot for the university library, the former abbey church of Saint-Hilaire-de-la-Celle (late 12th c.), built over the foundations of St. Hilary’s house, retains its deep choir and semicircular apse, strongly projecting transept with eastern apsidioles, and the remarkable octagonal ribbed cupola of the crossing.
The remains of the palace of the counts of Poitiers consist of a 12th-century donjon rebuilt under John, duke of Berry, and a large hall of the late 12th-early 13th century. The wall with monumental triple chimney was also rebuilt under John of Berry, whose statue accompanies those of Charles VI, Isabeau of Bavaria, and Jeanne de Boulogne.
