Église Saint-Martin d'Angers, Medieval church in Angers, France.
Église Saint-Martin d'Angers is a church in the heart of the city featuring a Gothic choir and architectural elements spanning multiple construction periods. The nave and side aisles display layers of design reflecting how the building evolved over centuries.
Archaeological excavations in the 20th century uncovered the foundations of earlier churches dating back to the 5th through 7th centuries. These discoveries reveal that this location served as an important religious site during the early medieval period.
The building was deconsecrated in 2006 and now holds several dozen Angevin statues displayed as a cultural space. The name Chapelle des Anges comes from the painted decoration of that chapel, where the Virgin and Child can still be made out. The chapter of canons founded here was suppressed after the French Revolution.
The building is entered from the historic centre of Angers; the eastern part, still standing, is what remains after 19th-century demolitions, when houses were built in front and in the former nave. It has been deconsecrated since 2006 and is run as a cultural space by the Maine-et-Loire department, which acquired it in 1986 for one franc. Allow time for the display of several dozen Angevin statues.
Foulques Nerra and his wife Hildegarde installed thirteen canons at Saint-Martin in the 11th century, making the church a collegiate foundation. The count also ordered work at the crossing of the transept, where a dome he commissioned still stands.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,374 contributors worldwide.