Chapelle templière de Libdeau

Toul

Not far from the episcopal city of Toul, the commandery of Libdeau was born in the second third of the 12th century from a gift of woodland and rights of use granted by Bishop Henri de Lorraine to the knights of the Temple. Of the whole monastic and agricultural complex that grew up there, only the Romanesque chapel has come down through the centuries: by good fortune it escaped the ravages of the Thirty Years' War, during which the surrounding farm buildings went up in smoke. After the suppression of the Order in 1312, the estate passed to the Hospitallers of Saint John of Jerusalem, then to the Order of Malta, before being sold as national property in 1794 for the considerable sum of 255,000 livres. Among the commanders who left their mark on the place, Gaspard de Pernes, appointed in 1681 after a naval career at Malta, introduced into Lorraine the "baume du commandeur" (commander's balm), an oriental preparation which appears from 1694 in a Parisian pharmaceutical work and enjoyed lasting use in dermatology. Restored today by an association of enthusiasts, the chapel of Libdeau remains the sole architectural witness to a Templar commandery in this corner of Lorraine, open to the public for occasional visits.

Getting there : D611, locality of the Libdeau farm, 54200 Toul, about 25 km west of Nancy

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound