In my continuing walks with my boys we did a lot of walking and came by area that normally we would just bypass or briefly walk on them, this time we took more time. And as usually the case with time, we saw a lot more of the beautiful monuments this time of the pink city of Toulouse. One of these monument in the off the beaten path way was the Church of St Exupère, and I like to update this post with new text and links, Hope you enjoy the post as I.
The Church of Saint-Exupère at 6 rue Lamarck is of baroque style which is located in the old district of Saint-Michel on the right bank at Allées Jules Guesdes. Its small octagonal bell-tower shelters a carillon of 14 bells. Built from 1620 to serve as a chapel with the barefoot Carmelites, a religious order resulting from the reform of Carmel, it was inaugurated in 1623 under the name of Saint Joseph.
A bit of chrono history tell us that on September 8, 1623 was the consecration of the first chapel of the Discalced Carmelites, May 25, 1665: Consecration of the Chapel of the Carmelites in its current dimensions. 1789, French revolution: the chapel is abandoned and becomes a warehouse. April 9, 1806: By imperial decree, the chapel is returned to Catholic worship, January 2, 1807: An ordinance from the Archbishop of Toulouse consecrates it as a parish church under the patronage of Saint-Exupère , bishop of Toulouse in the 4C.
The Saint-Exupère Church impresses with the beauty of its superb architecture. You can admire its decorations, its sculptures on the facade, its octagonal bell tower which houses 14 bells, an enormous crucifixion in front of the church. It has a majestic organ or carillon with 14 bells, the fourth most important in the Pink City of Toulouse, At the French revolution ,the domain of the order of Discalced Carmelite monks, which gradually extended from rue Lamarck to the Grand-Rond garden, was dismantled. The church erected between 1642 and 1675, initially devolved to Saint-Joseph, is disused like many religious buildings and serves as a salting warehouse.
The statue of Saint Joseph and the infant Jesus on the facade is from 1658. Posed in 1768, a Glory decorated with a triangle with Hebrew letters, a schematic geometric representation symbolic of the Holy Trinity. At the end of the 19C, a new stained glass window bearing the monogram of Christ in Greek letters was erected in its place. The choir Christ behind the tabernacle and the wooden statues and, from Saint Rose of Lima, in the first half of the 17C. There is a nice Christ on the Cross. The choir, which originally had a fence, was transformed in 1807 also the pulpit. There is a nice chapelle des Pénitents by Jean-Baptiste Despax. The nave is decorated with plasterwork from the 17C, with paintings painted in the 17-18C. Among this set “La Transverbération de Sainte Thèrèse d’Avila” by the Italian painter Antonio Verrio who spent two years in Toulouse.
In the Chapelle Notre-Dame de la Salette chapel, there is an anonymous painting of Saint Teresa of Avila restored to the church after the French revolution. In the first chapel on the left, a 17C painting representing “The Virgin and Child Jesus appearing to a Carmelite monk”
The current organ is remarkable. It was made in 1887 by the house Théodore Puget. Jacques-Pascal Virebent is the author of the grandstand with an organ column, with its four turrets, its three sideboards, its musician cherubs, its flower pots and its foliage friezes sculpted in the Baroque manner.
The Parish of St Exupére on the church : https://saint-exupere.fr/
The Occitanie region tourist office on the church :https://www.tourisme-occitanie.com/fr/fiche/patrimoine-culturel/eglise-saint-exupere-toulouse_TFOPCUMID031V501619/
There you go folks, an off the beaten path monument of Toulouse that needs to be seen ! This is a nice place to visit in a wonderful area full of gardens and museums. Again, hope you enjoy the post on the Church.of Saint Exupère as I
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 