Abbey of Saint-Pierre de Vertheuil
Abbaye de Vertheuil / Canonry of Vertheuil / Vertolium
(Vertheuil, Gironde)
The history of this establishment is little known due to the loss of its documentation. It is an Augustinian regular canonry founded by the will of William VIII, Duke of Aquitaine, between 1058 and 1086. In 1179, a bull issued by Pope Alexander III placed it under his protection and confirmed its possessions. Some sources mention that, prior to the establishment of the canons, the site may have been occupied by a Benedictine community.
Romanesque portal, modified
During the 16th century, it suffered the effects of the wars that affected the region; in 1572, the church was severely damaged. However, in the following century, it began to recover thanks to the intervention of the Abbey of Chancelade (Dordogne). Due to the Revolution, in 1792 it passed into private hands, although the site had already been in a state of marked decline for some time.
The church is a Romanesque building with significant modifications and reconstructions, especially during the 18th and 19th centuries. It has three naves, without a transept, and an ambulatory that connects the two side aisles behind the chancel. In this ambulatory, there are a central square apse and two additional semicircular apses. Inside, several capitals with Romanesque sculptural elements are preserved, as well as on the southern portal. There are also remains of the chapter house, while the other monastic buildings are mostly from the 18th century.
Baptismal font
Church plan
Illustration from Les vieilles églises de la Gironde (1912)
- BEAUNIER, Dom (1910). Abbayes et prieurés de l'ancienne France. Vol. 3: Auch, Bordeaux. Abbaye de Ligugé
- BRUTAILS, Jean-Auguste (1912). Les vieilles églises de la Gironde. Bordeus: Feret et Fils
- CABANOT, Jean (1990). Saint-Pierre de Vertheuil. Congrès archéologique de France, 145 s.
- DUBOURG-NOVES, Pierre (1969). Guyenne romane. La Pierre-qui-Vire: Zodiaque
- SAINT-MAUR, Congregació de (1720). Gallia Christiana in provincias ecclesiasticas distributa. Vol. 2. París: Typographia Regia
Vertheuil is located in the Médoc region, near the Gironde estuary