The Saint-André d'Évol Church (Catalan: Sant Andreu d'Èvol) is a Romanesque Catholic Church in the hamlet of Évol, in the commune of Olette, in the French department of Pyrénées-Orientales within the Occitania region.
Built in the 11th century, Saint-André church underwent an extension in the 18th century. Starting in 1577, it became the headquarters of a rosary company, which remained active for several centuries, keeping the place active despite the loss of its parish church status in the early 17th century. The entire building was listed as a historic monument in 1943.
Its Latin cross plan comprises a nave extended on the east by a semicircular apse, a large rosary chapel on the north and a bell tower on the south. The apse and bell tower are decorated with Lombard arcatures. The interior of the apse is original for its two semicircular absidioles recessed into the walls, and the exterior for the width of the lesenes separating the arcatures.
A conjuratory, placed in front of the church, was used by the priest to ward off bad luck and in particular strong storms, frequent in the region, attributed to the numerous witches believed to live in the upper valley of the ribera d'Èvol, located upstream.
The church is home to altarpieces, tabernacles, statues, paintings, and silverware (chalices, beakers, crosses). Many of these objects, dating from the 13th to 18th centuries, have been classified as historic monuments since the 20th century.
Location In the eastern Pyrenees, the watersheds of the ribera d'Èvol and ribera de Cabrils form the Garrotxes, a poor and depopulated region.(ca) "Les Garrotxes de Conflent" archive, Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana, on enciclopedia.cat, Barcelone, Editions 62. The small village of Évol lies on the banks of the river of the same name, at around altitude. The church of Saint-André lies to the north of the village, which is administratively part of the French department of Pyrénées-Orientales and the commune of Olette.
Évol and its church of Saint-André can be reached via a departmental road about three kilometers long, from Route Nationale 116, which links the Roussillon plain to the Cerdagne region, slightly upstream from the village of Olette. Railleu and Ayguatébia-Talau, further west, can also be reached via a mountain road that follows the course of the ribera de Cabrils. The nearby village of Oreilla can be reached on foot via a signposted path.Built on a steep slope in the Évol cemetery, Saint-André church can be reached from the village by a long flight of steps.
History Saint-André church was built at the beginning of the 11th century according to the traditional plan of Romanesque churches in the region: a single nave oriented west-east, extended to the east by a semicircular apse,Mallet 2003, p. 227, 228. all accessible through a door in the southern wall of the nave.Catalunya romànica. A square bell tower was added to the nave, near the apse on the south side, probably in the last quarter of this century.Bailbé 1989, p. 55.
The first mention of the church dates from 1347, when a merchant from Villefranche-de-Conflent bequeathed it five sous.
A rosary company was created at Saint-André d'Évol in 1577. To mark the occasion, a large altarpiece was installed(fr) "Retable du Rosaire, 15 tableaux : les Quinze mystères du Rosaire, statue : Vierge à l'Enfant", Palissy database. and the church was enlarged to include a rosary chapel.Llopet 1961, p. 44. By the 16th century, the village of Olette had become more populous and wealthier than Évol, but was not yet entitled to parish status. In 1559, the parish priest of Évol asked his bishop for permission to baptize newborns in the churches of Oreilla and Olette, but the inhabitants of Olette found this request insufficient and accused the parish priest of incapacity. He was acquitted in 1568.Llopet 1961, p. 18, 19. Sainte-Marie d'Olette was first mentioned as a parish church in 1597.Llopet 1961, p. 20. In 1603, Saint-André d'Évol lost its parish status to the church of Sainte-Marie d'Olette (renamed Saint-André),(ca) Pere Ponsich, "Sant Andreu, abans Santa Maria, d’Oleta", on Catalunya romànica, t. VII : La Cerdanya. El Conflent, Barcelone, Fundació Enciclopèdia Catalana, 1995 becoming its suffragan.(ca) Mercè Subirats i Pla et Ramon Corts i Blay, Diccionari d'història eclesiàstica de Catalunya, vol. 2 : D-O, Generalitat de Catalunya, 1998, p. 132.
In the 18th century, the top of the bell tower was remodeled. This may have been a restoration after the bell tower had been damaged. The rosary chapel was enlarged in 1723 and blessed on 7 April 1724. A new sacristy was built in 1751 to replace the old one, which, was nestled in a wall of the bell tower, and blessed as Christ's chapel in 1727. In 1772, the renovation of the Rosary Company was formalized, and the terms and conditions of the company's worship were defined.(fr) "Statue: Vierge assise", Palissy database.
During the Ancien Régime, the church's curate owned a large house below the place of worship, which served as the clergy house, as well as outbuildings for agricultural use, the land surrounding the cemetery and two irrigated fields.Llopet 1961, p. 59. In 1791, these lands -with the exception of the rectory garden- were sold for a very small sum, less than the estimate for major repairs to the clergy house dated 1781. The outbuildings were occupied by a family without authorization.Llopet 1961, p. 60. Also in 1791, the municipal council of the new commune of Évol met in the clergy house kitchen. On this occasion, the door connecting this room to the rest of the building was bricked up.(fr) "Église Saint-André d'Évol (XIème siècle) " archive, on evol66.fr. By 1827, the commune of Évol had become part of Olette, but the clergy house kitchen continued to be used as a meeting room by the villagers, while the rest of the building remained occupied by priests.Llopet 1961, p. 62, 63. From 1938 to 1945, the parish priest for Olette, Évol and Les Garrotxes was Jacques Llopet. Under his leadership, the building was listed as a historic monument in 1943.Llopet 1968, p. 9.(fr) "Église Saint-André d'Evol", Mérimée database. The remains of the conjuratory on the church steps were restored in 1950. In the 1960s, Abbé Llopet published two monographs on the Garrotxes region, in which the church of Saint-André figured prominently.Llopet 1961 and Llopet 1968.
In the course of the 20th and 21st centuries, several objects in the church were listed as historic monuments.
As of 2009, the municipality of Olette decided to purchase the former clergy house.(fr) Olette-Évol town council, "Séance du 27 août 2014" archive. A fundraising campaign was launched in 2015, with the help of the Fondation du Patrimoine, to restore the building.(fr) Olette-Évol town council, "Séance du 17 septembre 2015" archive. The work planned includes securing the surroundings, treating the facades and openings, and re-roofing with slate.(fr) "Ancien presbytère d'Évol" archive, on fondation-patrimoine.org, Fondation du Patrimoine.
Architecture Saint-André church is a Romanesque building with a single nave (interior dimensions: long by wide)Llopet 1961, p. 40. following an east–west axis, extended to the east by a semicircular apse. The door is located in the south wall. In addition to this typically Romanesque layout, a rectangular belfry tower is built on the south side of the church, close to the apse. In the corner formed by the apse and bell tower is a sacristy. The plan of the church is in the shape of a cross, the southern arm of the cross being formed by the bell tower, opposite which a large square chapel, known as the Rosary Chapel, forms the northern arm.The apsefeatures two semi-circular apses recessed into the walls on the interior side. This archaizing feature, similar to that found in some 10th-century churches, is perhaps an allusion to the Trinity. The exterior is decorated with Lombard arcatures and lesenes, as is usual in early Romanesque churches, but here again with an original feature: the exceptional width of the lesenes.
Bell tower The bell tower is square, , and high. It has three floors.Bailbé 1989, p. 52.
The first floor is a small, rectangular, unlit room, high, which connects the bell tower to the nave of the church. The second floor, also rectangular and high, has a double-arched window in the middle of the south wall. The second floor is square-shaped, high and features three large pointed-arch windows, which have now been bricked up. The third floor has a bay on each side, except for the north face. The varying interior dimensions of the floors are explained by the different thicknesses of the walls.
The tower is covered by a roof sloping towards the west, the north wall being extended upwards by a bell tower with two bays similar to those on the third floor. The two corners of the south wall are each topped by a rectangular gable surmounted by a pyramid.
The conjuratory In front of the church are the remains of a conjuratory, consisting of two stone arcades.
Conjuratorys are small buildings open at the four cardinal points, which enabled the parish priest to ward off bad luck and witches, reputedly numerous in Évol and the upper valley of the ribera d'Èvol. In particular, with the help of the tocsin from the nearby bell tower, it was able to ward off heavy rainfall, frequent in the region (Mediterranean episodes, thunderstorms), and attributed to the forces of Evil.Abélanet 2008, p. 105.(fr) "Évol", on Les plus beaux villages de France, Flammarion, 2018. According to journalist and explorer Gabrielle Maud Vassal, "everyone" in the valley believed in these legends and spells back in 1934.Vassal 1934, p. 366.
The presbytery Below the church is a large square house with an upper floor and attic: the presbytery. According to Jacques Llopet, it dates from the 10th or 11th century. For the Fondation du Patrimoine, it's more likely to be an 18th-century building. The house contains a square room with a separate entrance, measuring around on each side: this is the former kitchen, reused after the French Revolution as a meeting room by the villagers, where municipal councils met when Évol was a commune.Llopet 1961, p. 60-62. An old, walled-in door connected this room to the rest of the presbytery.Llopet 1961, p. 62. It was also in this room that the Évol commune archives were kept.Llopet 1961, p. 63.
Furnishings The sanctuary preserves an important church treasure, many elements of which are protected as historic monuments, testifying to the continuation of a lively cult over the centuries.
Tabernacle and silverware These include a tabernacle with painted wooden panels depicting the Virgin Mary, St. John, and a chalice topped with a communion host, dated 1553 and listed on 11 May 2001.(fr) "Tabernacle", Palissy database.
The church also houses several pieces of silverware:
A late 17th-century goldsmith's cross-reliquary with a 19th-century foot (height: 46 cm, 29 cm without base, length: 22 cm, listed as a historic monument on 27 June 2005).(fr) "Croix-reliquaire", Palissy database. A 17th-century silver chalice, known as the "Rosary chalice", without paten, in repoussé, chased and engraved silver, probably made in conjuratory. The base features an engraving of the Virgin and Child of the Rosary. It bears the donor's name on the base. The whole measures 25 cm. The diameter of the bowl is 9.5 cm and 15.4 cm at the base. Classified on 16 May 2003.(fr) "Calice du Rosaire", Palissy database. Another chalice, with its paten, in gilded, embossed, and engraved silver. This chalice is decorated with floral motifs and measures 24.5 cm high. Its diameter is 9 cm at the bowl and 14.4 cm at the base. The paten is in the shape of a circular plate, 15 cm in diameter. The set, probably made in Perpignan, dates from the 17th century and has been listed as a historic monument since 16 May 2003.(fr) "Calice et patène", Palissy database.