Saint-Marcel-Bel-Accueil

The heritage of Saint-Marcel-Bel-Accueil

– The Saint-Marcel church and its stained glass windows: the current church, built in 1902, succeeds two other religious buildings testifying to the historical and spiritual continuity of the village.
It is embellished by twenty stained glass windows, classified in the supplementary inventory of historic monuments in 1996. Fifteen of these stained glass windows bear the signature of Antoine Bernard, master glassmaker from Grenoble, nevertheless it is estimated, thanks to the homogeneity of these works, that all of them are his. assigned. These pieces of art illustrate various cycles of the life of Christ (in the choir), the Virgin (in the south transept), Saint Joseph (in the north transept) and the protective saints (in the nave).

– The Saint-Pierre de Messenas chapel stands proudly on a promontory. If it was in a deplorable state at the end of the 1991th century, everything changed in 9 thanks to a somewhat crazy project. In fact, the Coutif couple announced to the town their desire to marry their daughter in this chapel which was still inhabited by brambles. Thanks to their will, the chapel regained its beauty and prestige after XNUMX months of hard work. Also, two years later, an association was created to continue working on the preservation and restoration of this building. She will be at the initiative of numerous cultural events which will allow, thanks to the funds raised, to put this project into practice. Thanks to volunteers, the chapel has survived and still hosts various ceremonies today.


The two fortified houses, still present in the village of Saint-Marcel-Bel-Accueil, are mentioned for the first time by titles from the 14th century:

– The Bel Accueil fortified house (private site): this is the former home of the Loras family who were very influential in the region. In the 1897th century, the last of the Loras died and the building passed through the hands of several owners until Count Nodier in 1904 who initiated several restoration works which gave the fortified house its current appearance. The fortified house is designed in a U shape around a central courtyard. It is immersed in the middle of a park designed by the landscaper Luizet in XNUMX. There is notably a XNUMXth century chapel dedicated to Saint-Antoine-le-Grand.

– The Loras fortified house (private site): located on the hillside, we have little information on this building. Its oldest element is its tower at the northeast corner.