Marchal Church
Champs-sur-Tarentaine-Marchal
Opening period
All year round daily.
Description
Former castle chapel. The village of Marchal was first mentioned in 1157 in a charter issued by the Bishop of Clermont.
A castle is documented here in 1262, but it disappears from historical records after 1326, having probably been largely destroyed during the Hundred Years’ War.
Later, in 1854, municipal archives reveal that the roof of the castle chapel was in a very poor state of repair. In 1886, the Marchal church council proposed building a larger chancel, as the church was too small to accommodate all the worshippers from neighbouring hamlets and villages who regularly attended Mass. The diocesan building works committee requested several changes to the architect’s plans: a semicircular apse instead of a polygonal one, and a lowering of the floor level. The work was completed in 1887, the year the chapel became the parish church of a village that was then thriving and supported by significant commercial activity.
Inside, the building features a nave flanked by two Gothic chapels with rib vaults. The nave appears to have been extended eastwards, widened on either side by the addition of two chapels, and completed with a circular apse. The chancel contains a fine Neo-Romanesque high altar, a crucifix and several elements — an angel’s head and a statue of God the Father — which appear to have belonged to an earlier altarpiece.
Marchal Church also houses a fine collection of paintings catalogued in Mme Moulier’s book *La peinture religieuse en Haute Auvergne* (Religious Painting in Haute Auvergne). These include *The Assumption* (18th century), *The Annunciation* (18th century), *The Immaculate Heart of Mary* (19th century), *The Good Shepherd*, *The Sermon on the Mount* (late 19th century), *Saint Joseph and the Child Jesus* (late 19th century), and a copy of Raphael’s *Madonna della Seggiola* (1893).
Marchal was once an independent seigneury. It was later incorporated into the commune of Trémouille, became a separate commune between 1828 and 1972, and was subsequently incorporated into Champs-sur-Tarentaine.
**Visiting information:** The church is open for self-guided visits. Keys can be collected from the town hall of Champs-sur-Tarentaine-Marchal: +33 (0)4 71 78 72 75.
Later, in 1854, municipal archives reveal that the roof of the castle chapel was in a very poor state of repair. In 1886, the Marchal church council proposed building a larger chancel, as the church was too small to accommodate all the worshippers from neighbouring hamlets and villages who regularly attended Mass. The diocesan building works committee requested several changes to the architect’s plans: a semicircular apse instead of a polygonal one, and a lowering of the floor level. The work was completed in 1887, the year the chapel became the parish church of a village that was then thriving and supported by significant commercial activity.
Inside, the building features a nave flanked by two Gothic chapels with rib vaults. The nave appears to have been extended eastwards, widened on either side by the addition of two chapels, and completed with a circular apse. The chancel contains a fine Neo-Romanesque high altar, a crucifix and several elements — an angel’s head and a statue of God the Father — which appear to have belonged to an earlier altarpiece.
Marchal Church also houses a fine collection of paintings catalogued in Mme Moulier’s book *La peinture religieuse en Haute Auvergne* (Religious Painting in Haute Auvergne). These include *The Assumption* (18th century), *The Annunciation* (18th century), *The Immaculate Heart of Mary* (19th century), *The Good Shepherd*, *The Sermon on the Mount* (late 19th century), *Saint Joseph and the Child Jesus* (late 19th century), and a copy of Raphael’s *Madonna della Seggiola* (1893).
Marchal was once an independent seigneury. It was later incorporated into the commune of Trémouille, became a separate commune between 1828 and 1972, and was subsequently incorporated into Champs-sur-Tarentaine.
**Visiting information:** The church is open for self-guided visits. Keys can be collected from the town hall of Champs-sur-Tarentaine-Marchal: +33 (0)4 71 78 72 75.
Services
Equipment :
Car park
Free car park
Parking nearby
Public WC
Prices
Free access.
Location
Le bourg de Marchal
15270 Champs-sur-Tarentaine-Marchal
15270 Champs-sur-Tarentaine-Marchal
Things to doin the area
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Crédits