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Collégiale Sainte-Croix
“Grandier was to be subjected to “the question” both ordinary and extraordinary; he was then to kneel at the doors of St. Peter’s and St. Ursula’s and there, with a rope round his neck and a two-pound taper in his hand, ask pardon of God, the King and Justice; next, he was to be taken to the Place Sainte-Croix, tied to a stake and burned alive; after which his ashes were to be scattered to the four winds.”
Aldous Huxley
The Sainte-Croix Collegiate Church was at the heart of Urbain Grandier’s life. A parish priest and canon of Sainte-Croix, the man was accused of witchcraft in 1632. The sisters of the Ursuline convent recognized him in the ghost that had terrorized them every night since the night of September 21. That night, three nuns insulted God, made horrible faces and shouted blasphemies.
These heavy accusations made Urbain Grandier the number one enemy in the Vienne region but also in France, pushing the Cardinal of Richelieu to personally take the case in hand. The fact that the man of faith became a pariah suited the cardinal, who was targeted by the priest in a violent pamphlet, Lettre de la cordelière de la reine mère à M. de Baradas.
The knife falls for Urbain Grandier when a pact he allegedly made with the Devil surfaces. After many other events such as a plague epidemic and the demon of Astaroth, which pointed to Urbain Grandier as the source of their troubles, the religious was arrested on December 6, 1633.
Tried, acquitted and finally subjected to torture and exorcism, many of these tortures were inflicted on the priest in the Collégiale Sainte-Croix but also in the adjoining square. It was here that Urbain Grandier was condemned to be burned at the stake on August 18, 1634, in front of 6000 people. As to whether the clergyman was indeed behind these strange affairs, history has answered the question. The possession crises lasted until 1637.
This case fascinated Aldous Huxley by its historical aspect first of all but especially psychological. The author details the “possessions”, the fickle personality of Urbain Grandier, his indictment, his trial and his powerful enemy Cardinal de Richelieu.
Aldous Huxley’s book has inspired three other people. The playwright John Whiting for his play The Devils (1960), the Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki for his opera Die Teufel von Loudun (1969) and the director Ken Russell for his film The Devils (1971).
Collégiale Sainte-Croix
Built in the 11th century by lesser Benedictines, the Collégiale Sainte-Croix is an ancient Catholic church in Loudun.
Incredible paintings dating from the 12th and 13th centuries are still visible in the building, despite the ups and downs that the Collégiale Sainte-Croix has undergone.
In 1558, the city of Loudun is prey to the wars of religion and the Collégiale Sainte-Croix is partially destroyed. In 1634, it was the scene of the death sentence of Urbain Grandier, a priest accused of witchcraft.
Sold just after the revolution, the Collégiale became a market called “Marchés Sainte-Croix” until 1991. In the meantime, important work was carried out on the roof structure, which was in danger of collapsing. In 1889, after the World Fair, an Eiffel-type model was installed and is still in place today.
Since 1995, it now hosts many temporary exhibitions, flea markets and concerts.
The Fantrippers Buying Board
The Paris guide to the 1000 cult places of films, series, music, comics and novels
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The café of Amélie, the mansion of Untouchables, the jazz club of the finale of La La Land, the Hôtel du Nord of the mythical replica of Arletty “Atmosphere”, the cinema of A bout de souffle, the restaurant of Ratatouille, the quays of the Seine of Midnight in Paris, the secret places of the Da Vinci Code, the grocery store of January in La Traversée de Paris , the Bridge of Inception and Peur sur la ville, the addresses of the spectacular scenes of Mission Impossible 6, but also series Call my agent, Gears, Le Bureau des légendes, Sense8, Sex and The City, Gossip Girl…
Etienne Daho’s Café de Flore, Jay-Z and Kanye West’s hotel in Nas in Paris, Serge Gainsbourg’s Poinçonneur des Lilas metro station, Serge Reggiani and Marc Lavoine’s Mirabeau Bridge, Mc Solaar’s Lyon station…
The places evoked in the comics Adèle Blanc-Sec, Largo Winch, Blake and Mortimer, Michel Vaillant…
But also in the novels of Ernest Hemingway, Victor Hugo, Leo Malet, Daniel Pennac, Marc Levy, Guillaume Musso… you’ll find all the must-see places of Parisian Pop Culture in this new guide.
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Discover all the places The Devils of Loudun on our map
By Damien Duarte
Passionné par la culture pop depuis son enfance, ses références vont de Donald Duck à Batman en passant par Marty McFly. Fantripper dans l'âme, voyager sur les traces de Ghostbusters, James Bond ou des héros de romans comme Cotton Malone fait partie d'un séjour idéal et réussi !