The Church Saint Germain l’Auxerrois of Dourdan, part I !!

Posted in France

The department 91 Essonne is not well known yet surrounding Paris and well worth your while to pay attention to what it has to offer.  The town of Dourdan is in the Essonne dept 91 of the Île de France region of my belle France,  about 44 km from Paris. (see posts) , I like to tell you about the Church Saint Germain l’Auxerrois, part I !! This picture was spread inside other post and felled it needs to have a post of its own, Hope you enjoy the post as I.

The Church Saint-Germain-l’Auxerrois is dedicated to Bishop Saint Germain l’Auxerrois, and is located in City center Dourdan, opposite the castle, on the right side of the Place du Général-de-Gaulle which welcomes the Grande Halle du Marché. It dominates the left bank of the L’Orge river.

dourdan ch st germain d auxerre rue demetz aug11

A first church would have been founded by Bertrade de Laon, mother of Charlemagne in the 7C, the construction of the current church began in 1150 under the direction of the canons of Saint-Chéron and was completed in the 12C, In 1641, the asymmetrical arrows were added; In 1648, Anne of Austria offered the high altar to four columns of the Chapel of the Virgin; Then, in 1689, the Chapel of the Virgin was increased the length of 14 meters become the bedside. Vandalised during the French revolution, the Church was transformed into a temple of victorious reason, then into prison until back to Catholic service in 1795. The Church Saint Germain l’Auxerrois was built along the lines of the Cathedral of Chartres in 1150 and finished in the 13C  with modifications in the 15C and 17C,and finally rehabilitated from ruins in the 19C, The portal gate on the north side is from the 15C, and there are wonderful paintings, sculptures.

The Church Saint Germain l’Auxerrois is 50 meters long, 18 meters wide, and the north arrow peaks at 50 meters. Inside the church, you can see a funerary slab decorated with the effigy of Guillaume de Chatillonville which served as a bridge to span a ditch under the French revolution. It was returned to the church after being recovered by a local citizen. The chasse of the relics of Saint Félicien in glass and precious metal which was offered by Marguerite-Louise d’Orléans, Grand Duchess of Tuscany in 1695 is exhibited every June 9. Portraits of the priests of the church since the French revolution complete the decoration. The organ, was built in 1870, The first bronze bell melted in 1599, the second, baptized Henriette-Félicité-Germaine was melted in 1778 in bronze, the third, is found in the highest arrow, melted in 1599, and the fourth, volley bell, is with the three large bells. Melted in 1995, it is called Marie-Poussepin.

The Dourdan tourist office on the church: https://www.dourdan-tourisme.fr/Chateau-et-patrimoine/L-eglise-Saint-Germain-L-Auxerrois

The City of Dourdan on the church : https://www.dourdan.fr/eglise/

The Essonne dept 91 tourist office on the church : https://www.essonnetourisme.com/en/p/the-church-of-saint-germain-lauxerrois/

There you go folks, another jewel very close to Paris and on the off the beaten path, worthty of a visit indeed. You will be glad you visit the Royal town of Dourdan . Again, hope you enjoy the post on the Church Saint Germain l’Auxerrois part I !! as I.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

Unknown's avatar

Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.