The parish church of Cléry, belonging to the diocese of Tarentaise, was the seat of a priory of Augustinian canons whose date of foundation is unknown, probably established around 1125. This canonical community settled on the site of an earlier church, which was rebuilt when the canons arrived. In 1132, Utbold, prior of Cléry, was one of the figures who took part in the act of foundation of the nearby Cistercian abbey of Tamié (Savoie).
During the thirteenth century, Cléry’s relationship with the chapter of canons of the cathedral of Moûtiers-Tarentaise grew stronger, and the priory effectively became dependent upon it. In 1256, Pope Alexander IV officially united Cléry with Moûtiers, and the canons of the priory moved to the parishes dependent on it, until, in 1263, they settled permanently in Moûtiers. The Romanesque church of the priory, now serving as the parish church, survives. It is a three-aisled building, with very narrow side aisles, terminated by a semicircular apse. It has a transept that is only slightly developed and a later-added apse chapel.
- BERGERET-JEANNET, L. (1914). Histoire de Cléry-Frontenex (Savoie), des origines à 1794. Chambéry: F. Gentil
- BESSE, J.-M.; i altres (1939). Abbayes et prieurés de l'ancienne France. Vol. 9: Province ecclésiastique de Vienne. Abbaye de Ligugé
- OURSEL, Raymond (1965). L'église de Cléry. Congrès archéologique de France, 123 ss. Société française d'archéologie
- OURSEL, Raymond (1990). Lyonnais, Dombes, Bugey et Savoie romans. La nuit des temps, 73. Zodiaque
The church of the priory of Cléry stands on elevated ground, west of Albertville