Saint Polycarpe
Its history and Pre-Romanesque Altars
Saint Polycarpe is situated near the town of Limoux on a stream which is a tributary of the Aude. The town is 7 km from Limoux, 8 km from Saint-Hilaire, 24 km from Carcassonne, 31 km from Mouthoumet and 42 km from Lagrasse.
Saint-Polycarpe is located on the Green Meridian, the Paris Meridian.
Founded in 783 by Athala, a Spanish nobleman who fled his own country when it was invaded by Muslims, St. Polycarp was in its beginnings, a Benedictine monastery with a few houses attached to it and surrounded by vineyards.
Polycarp was a Bishop of Izmir in Turkey and a very important Saint in early church history. The church of Polycarpe in the Aude is named in honour of this Saint.
Further information on this church is as follows:
"THE ABBEY OF ST POLYCARPE and its dependencies"
http://www.renneslechateau.com/rhedae/sipra/alet.htm
The Abbey of Saint-Polycarpe is one of the oldest monastery's in the country and region of Rhedez. Its creation is nevertheless after that of the the founding of the famous Abbey of Alet, which is nearby. A Spanish nobleman named Attala left his homeland - which had been invaded by the Saracens (*), and then settled in the region called Rhedesium and retired to a small monastery, almost a simple hermitage, situated on the banks of the stream called Rieugrand and which bore the name of the monastery of St. Polycarp. Attala became prior of the convent and the place, and thanks to its wealth, became largely endowed. Charlemagne granted the abbot Attala certain privileges which were confirmed and expanded by his successors, Charles the Bald and Louis the Debonair. Nevertheless it is, if we can say so, a courtesy we give the convent of Saint-Polycarpe the name of an abbey. It was originally a simple priory and despite repeated competitions from the abbots of Lagrasse, St Polycarpe always remained under the control of the Abbey of Alet. Indeed, in a council held at Toulouse, in 1119, under the presidency of Pope Calixtus II, the only priests who had the right to attend the meeting, in conjunction with the bishops of the region, were those of Lagrasse, Aniane and Alet. Therefore, the Sueperiors of the other monasteries of the region were merely only trustees or priors. It was precisely during this council that it was confirmed in favour of the Abbey of Alet, possession of the monasteries of St. Polycarp and Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet.
Comment: The conditions for the arrival of Attala and other Hispani in the Razés were explained in the instructions on Alet. Prevailing thesis is that the monastery of St. Polycarp was founded around the year 780. (See Sabarthès). In the year 812, Charlemagne issued a Capitulaire, addressed to the counts of the
Spanish March - who included Bera, Count of Barcelona and also the Razés - to encourage the establishment of Spanish refugees in Roussillon and Razés which had been depopulated by the Muslim raids. As part of this Capitulaire migrants were to receive ownership of the land on which they had settled after a thirty year occupation: this directive is known as the term 'aprision'.
On this subject see my article entitled "Rhedae under Muslim domination."
Landlocked, so to speak, between the Abbey of Alet, that of Lagrasse and Saint-Hilaire, the priory of Saint-Polycarpe could not extend its domain by creating villages outside of its district, but it transformed oppidums (some Visigothic) lost in the mountains. This is a justice for the religious of the house to see the large part they took in the moral and material development of the local people. We owe the foundation of the villages og Gaja and Malras in Lower Razés, the hamlet of Salles, near Limoux, Luc-sur-Aude, Terroles, and Peyrolles and Cassaignes in the Upper Razés. A charter of King Eudes or Odo, as we have already quoted, dated June 898, confirmed in favor of the priory of Saint-Polycarpe possession of the various villages which had long been its property. The work of these religious, who were real pioneers and true missionaries in a country almost wild, did not profit them much, because, as a result of theft from neighboring lords, the convent was stripped of most of its possessions, and it was only as a result of its submission to the Abbey of Alet that they held a meager part of his domain.
A small part of the construction of the abbey of Saint-Polycarpe is still standing. We note in particular a few hoops cloister galleries which give an idea of the architectural conditions of the cloister, which echoed those at the Abbey of Saint-Hilaire, still standing in its shape and dimensions. Only the church of the convent of Saint Polycarpe has been preserved and is now the parish church of the village. Its porch is surmounted by a square tower ending with a pyramidal roof like Campagne-sur-Aude.
Near the village of Saint-Polycarpe found on the south side of the hamlet is Arce, Ert on surrounding land are the ruins of an old castle which relate some historical memories. The Lords of Arce played a role quite often striking among the nobles of the country vassals of the Counts of Rhedez, and were often in rebellion against their sovereign. Castle Arce was demolished during the Albigensian war. Was found in the vicinity of St. Polycarp of flint axes and other tracks from the Gallo-Celtic.
Sabarthès dictionary:
St. Polycarp
Commune canton of Saint-Hilaire. Parish
Church dedicated to the Virgin we see the ruins north of the present church,
which was the abbey church. Old Benedictine Abbey (under the patronage of St. Polycarp), founded in 780 by Attala, successively subjected to the Abbey of Alet and the Abbey of Lagrasse. In 1756, the Archbishop of Narbonne refused to join the hospital Limoux mense conventuelle (archiv. Com. Limoux, AA, 56); property were joined the seminary of Narbonne, 1771 (Arch. Com. Narbonne; BB; Invent. Somm., II, p 330)Monasterium Sancti Policarpi, Situm in pago Redensi, 884 (HL. II) Monasterium .... Sancti Policarpi, super fluviam Rivograndi, 889, (ibid) Ad locum Sancti Policarpi, 1082 (ibid); Villa Sancti Policarpi, 1108 ( arch. Aude) Ecclesia Sancti Policarpi, 1119 (HL, V); Castrum Rivo Grandi, 1324 (Arch. Aude) Castrum de Rivo prope limosum Grandi, 1351 (Mah. II, 331); Sainct Policarpy, 1594 (Arch . Aude) Saint Policarpe, 1781 (C. dioc. NARB.).
Among the former abbots of Saint-Polycarpe, there are several members of the House of Dax, who were natives of Carcassonne and other places such as Axat, La Serpent and Leuc. Two well known ones are:
Antoine II Dax (or Dax), lord of Trevas, Bishop of Alet, abbot of Saint-Polycarpe and canon of Carcassonne Cathedral Saint-Nazaire - the first Vicar General of Carcassonne (vicar of Cardinal de Bourbon ) and canon and archdeacon of Alet, before being re-appointed vicar general of the new bishop of Carcassonne, François Faucon , 20 March 1554, on behalf of which he took possession of the diocese on April 5, provided the episcopal see of Alet in 1564 which he took possession in 1565 - he died in 1579 a few years after that. And Paul Dax (or Dax), abbot of St-Polycarpe for 45 years 1570 to 1615 and archdeacon of Alet , chaplain of King Henry III, it was involved in the conversion King Henri IV who intervened in Paris in 1593 .
Interestingly the Dax family may have a peripheral connection to the affair of Rennes. This is because Dax is one of the members of the house "Dax of Axat and Cessales ". The connection is from that of Francis I of Dax (or Dax), eldest son of John I Dax (or Dax), lord of Leuc of La Serpent etc.., deaf and dumb by birth, but known for his qualities of good business and negotiator, he married Marguerite de Narbonne-Pelet daughter Pons, lord of the Vérune and Marie Antoinette Rosset Rocozel of Fleury.
Marie Antoinette was born 1721 and died 1754. Through her family, that of the Rocozel of Fleury there is a connection to Paul-François-Vincent de Fleury. It was through the marriage of his grandmother - Marguerite de Rosset, of the same family as Marie Antoinette Rosset Rocozel - that Paul-François-Vincent de Fleury, who was Lord of Rennes-les-Bains, Montferrand, Bézis and marquis de Blanchefort became related to the Rosset's. He later married (on the 13 sept. 1767) Marie-Anne-Gabrielle-Élisabeth d’Hautpoul, daughter of François d'Hautpoul, baron de Rennes-les-Bains, Sgr de Montferrand, Bézis, and the marquis de Blanchefort that the two families became linked together. It is this same Paul-François-Vincent de Fleury who has two graves in the cemetery at Rennes-les-Bains and this Paul-François-Vincent de Fleury who de Sede alleges created the Coume Sourde stone.
St Polycarpe church has some elements of a pre-Romanesque period - that is a period of approximately 400 years in the art of Western Europe which runs from the time of the Merovingians, in the VIth century, followed by the Carolingian Renaissance, in the eighth century and the ninth century, until at beginning of Roman period around the year 1000. The dominant theme during this period was the introduction and absorption of classical and Christian forms from the Mediterranean with those of the Germanic's, creating new innovative forms and leading to the peak of the Romanesque in the eleventh and twelfth centuries .
Below are some pictures of the altars of the church of Saint Polycarpe:
Saint-Polycarpe is located on the Green Meridian, the Paris Meridian.
Founded in 783 by Athala, a Spanish nobleman who fled his own country when it was invaded by Muslims, St. Polycarp was in its beginnings, a Benedictine monastery with a few houses attached to it and surrounded by vineyards.
Polycarp was a Bishop of Izmir in Turkey and a very important Saint in early church history. The church of Polycarpe in the Aude is named in honour of this Saint.
Further information on this church is as follows:
"THE ABBEY OF ST POLYCARPE and its dependencies"
http://www.renneslechateau.com/rhedae/sipra/alet.htm
The Abbey of Saint-Polycarpe is one of the oldest monastery's in the country and region of Rhedez. Its creation is nevertheless after that of the the founding of the famous Abbey of Alet, which is nearby. A Spanish nobleman named Attala left his homeland - which had been invaded by the Saracens (*), and then settled in the region called Rhedesium and retired to a small monastery, almost a simple hermitage, situated on the banks of the stream called Rieugrand and which bore the name of the monastery of St. Polycarp. Attala became prior of the convent and the place, and thanks to its wealth, became largely endowed. Charlemagne granted the abbot Attala certain privileges which were confirmed and expanded by his successors, Charles the Bald and Louis the Debonair. Nevertheless it is, if we can say so, a courtesy we give the convent of Saint-Polycarpe the name of an abbey. It was originally a simple priory and despite repeated competitions from the abbots of Lagrasse, St Polycarpe always remained under the control of the Abbey of Alet. Indeed, in a council held at Toulouse, in 1119, under the presidency of Pope Calixtus II, the only priests who had the right to attend the meeting, in conjunction with the bishops of the region, were those of Lagrasse, Aniane and Alet. Therefore, the Sueperiors of the other monasteries of the region were merely only trustees or priors. It was precisely during this council that it was confirmed in favour of the Abbey of Alet, possession of the monasteries of St. Polycarp and Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet.
Comment: The conditions for the arrival of Attala and other Hispani in the Razés were explained in the instructions on Alet. Prevailing thesis is that the monastery of St. Polycarp was founded around the year 780. (See Sabarthès). In the year 812, Charlemagne issued a Capitulaire, addressed to the counts of the
Spanish March - who included Bera, Count of Barcelona and also the Razés - to encourage the establishment of Spanish refugees in Roussillon and Razés which had been depopulated by the Muslim raids. As part of this Capitulaire migrants were to receive ownership of the land on which they had settled after a thirty year occupation: this directive is known as the term 'aprision'.
On this subject see my article entitled "Rhedae under Muslim domination."
Landlocked, so to speak, between the Abbey of Alet, that of Lagrasse and Saint-Hilaire, the priory of Saint-Polycarpe could not extend its domain by creating villages outside of its district, but it transformed oppidums (some Visigothic) lost in the mountains. This is a justice for the religious of the house to see the large part they took in the moral and material development of the local people. We owe the foundation of the villages og Gaja and Malras in Lower Razés, the hamlet of Salles, near Limoux, Luc-sur-Aude, Terroles, and Peyrolles and Cassaignes in the Upper Razés. A charter of King Eudes or Odo, as we have already quoted, dated June 898, confirmed in favor of the priory of Saint-Polycarpe possession of the various villages which had long been its property. The work of these religious, who were real pioneers and true missionaries in a country almost wild, did not profit them much, because, as a result of theft from neighboring lords, the convent was stripped of most of its possessions, and it was only as a result of its submission to the Abbey of Alet that they held a meager part of his domain.
A small part of the construction of the abbey of Saint-Polycarpe is still standing. We note in particular a few hoops cloister galleries which give an idea of the architectural conditions of the cloister, which echoed those at the Abbey of Saint-Hilaire, still standing in its shape and dimensions. Only the church of the convent of Saint Polycarpe has been preserved and is now the parish church of the village. Its porch is surmounted by a square tower ending with a pyramidal roof like Campagne-sur-Aude.
Near the village of Saint-Polycarpe found on the south side of the hamlet is Arce, Ert on surrounding land are the ruins of an old castle which relate some historical memories. The Lords of Arce played a role quite often striking among the nobles of the country vassals of the Counts of Rhedez, and were often in rebellion against their sovereign. Castle Arce was demolished during the Albigensian war. Was found in the vicinity of St. Polycarp of flint axes and other tracks from the Gallo-Celtic.
Sabarthès dictionary:
St. Polycarp
Commune canton of Saint-Hilaire. Parish
Church dedicated to the Virgin we see the ruins north of the present church,
which was the abbey church. Old Benedictine Abbey (under the patronage of St. Polycarp), founded in 780 by Attala, successively subjected to the Abbey of Alet and the Abbey of Lagrasse. In 1756, the Archbishop of Narbonne refused to join the hospital Limoux mense conventuelle (archiv. Com. Limoux, AA, 56); property were joined the seminary of Narbonne, 1771 (Arch. Com. Narbonne; BB; Invent. Somm., II, p 330)Monasterium Sancti Policarpi, Situm in pago Redensi, 884 (HL. II) Monasterium .... Sancti Policarpi, super fluviam Rivograndi, 889, (ibid) Ad locum Sancti Policarpi, 1082 (ibid); Villa Sancti Policarpi, 1108 ( arch. Aude) Ecclesia Sancti Policarpi, 1119 (HL, V); Castrum Rivo Grandi, 1324 (Arch. Aude) Castrum de Rivo prope limosum Grandi, 1351 (Mah. II, 331); Sainct Policarpy, 1594 (Arch . Aude) Saint Policarpe, 1781 (C. dioc. NARB.).
Among the former abbots of Saint-Polycarpe, there are several members of the House of Dax, who were natives of Carcassonne and other places such as Axat, La Serpent and Leuc. Two well known ones are:
Antoine II Dax (or Dax), lord of Trevas, Bishop of Alet, abbot of Saint-Polycarpe and canon of Carcassonne Cathedral Saint-Nazaire - the first Vicar General of Carcassonne (vicar of Cardinal de Bourbon ) and canon and archdeacon of Alet, before being re-appointed vicar general of the new bishop of Carcassonne, François Faucon , 20 March 1554, on behalf of which he took possession of the diocese on April 5, provided the episcopal see of Alet in 1564 which he took possession in 1565 - he died in 1579 a few years after that. And Paul Dax (or Dax), abbot of St-Polycarpe for 45 years 1570 to 1615 and archdeacon of Alet , chaplain of King Henry III, it was involved in the conversion King Henri IV who intervened in Paris in 1593 .
Interestingly the Dax family may have a peripheral connection to the affair of Rennes. This is because Dax is one of the members of the house "Dax of Axat and Cessales ". The connection is from that of Francis I of Dax (or Dax), eldest son of John I Dax (or Dax), lord of Leuc of La Serpent etc.., deaf and dumb by birth, but known for his qualities of good business and negotiator, he married Marguerite de Narbonne-Pelet daughter Pons, lord of the Vérune and Marie Antoinette Rosset Rocozel of Fleury.
Marie Antoinette was born 1721 and died 1754. Through her family, that of the Rocozel of Fleury there is a connection to Paul-François-Vincent de Fleury. It was through the marriage of his grandmother - Marguerite de Rosset, of the same family as Marie Antoinette Rosset Rocozel - that Paul-François-Vincent de Fleury, who was Lord of Rennes-les-Bains, Montferrand, Bézis and marquis de Blanchefort became related to the Rosset's. He later married (on the 13 sept. 1767) Marie-Anne-Gabrielle-Élisabeth d’Hautpoul, daughter of François d'Hautpoul, baron de Rennes-les-Bains, Sgr de Montferrand, Bézis, and the marquis de Blanchefort that the two families became linked together. It is this same Paul-François-Vincent de Fleury who has two graves in the cemetery at Rennes-les-Bains and this Paul-François-Vincent de Fleury who de Sede alleges created the Coume Sourde stone.
St Polycarpe church has some elements of a pre-Romanesque period - that is a period of approximately 400 years in the art of Western Europe which runs from the time of the Merovingians, in the VIth century, followed by the Carolingian Renaissance, in the eighth century and the ninth century, until at beginning of Roman period around the year 1000. The dominant theme during this period was the introduction and absorption of classical and Christian forms from the Mediterranean with those of the Germanic's, creating new innovative forms and leading to the peak of the Romanesque in the eleventh and twelfth centuries .
Below are some pictures of the altars of the church of Saint Polycarpe:
For a more in depth history of Saint Polycarpe, see here: http://archive.org/stream/histoiredelabba00reyngoog#page/n7/mode/2up