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Templar siteMorbihan

Chapelle de la commanderie de Limerzel

Limerzel

Dimensions
Rural stone chapel, rectangular plan with a flat east end, six corner buttresses, south door with a pointed arch adorned with a Latin cross, ashlar bell-cote
Period
13th–14th century (foundation of the Templar commandery); passed to the Hospitallers of Saint John of Jerusalem after the dissolution of the order in 1312; interior fittings dating from at least the 17th century
What stands there
two houses of the Temple attested in the commune: Temple-de-Bas (chapel of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine, in ruins by 1750, demolished around 1800) and Temple-de-Haut, the only chapel still standing today

Limerzel had two establishments of the Order of the Temple, Temple-de-Bas and Temple-de-Haut, mentioned from 1272 in the archives of the abbey of Notre-Dame de Prières. Temple-de-Bas, a chapel dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene, fell into ruin in the 18th century and was demolished around 1800; only Temple-de-Haut has survived, first dedicated to Saint John the Baptist under the Templars and then reconsecrated to Saint Julian after the arrival of the Hospitallers of Saint John of Jerusalem. The present building, in a good state of preservation, retains the sober rural architecture typical of Breton chapels of the late Middle Ages. The site illustrates the Templar-to-Hospitaller continuity characteristic of what became of the Temple's possessions in Brittany after 1312.

Further reading

Getting there : rural chapel visible from the public road; opening of the interior not confirmed

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

See it on the map OpenStreetMap Directions

Ambient sound

Chapelle de la commanderie de Limerzel
Auteur inconnu · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

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