The best road cycling routes around Azé

Rue du Change in Vendôme. Pedestrian street with a view of the Trinity

Although the Notre-Dame church in the town of Areines may seem modest in size, the richness of its interior decoration is remarkable. It consists of a rectangular nave from the 11th century that extends into a narrower choir and ends with a semi-circular apse from the 12th century. The bell tower was added in the Gothic period. All the walls are covered with murals. The restoration of those in the choir and apse dating from the middle of the 12th century allows us to see: Christ in Majesty, the Lamb with a halo, the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Nativity, saints and apostles. Some of these primitive frescoes were covered by paintings from the 15th, 16th and 18th centuries. Many traces are visible on the walls of the nave and will be restored in the years to come.

In 1960, Father Jacques Lepage, then vicar in the city center, was sent to prospect and begin to bring the Christian Community to life in the new Rottes district. A plot of land was found and an architect was chosen, Mr. Michel Marconnet. On October 19, 1962, the temporary chapel, the current Jacques Lepage hall, was opened. First baptism, on October 21, 62. There would be 10 more at the end of the calendar year and a hundred or so each year that followed. The population of the district was very young and growing. In 1966, while in the city center the 2 parishes of the Trinity and the Madeleine were merged, that of NDR was erected. Father Lepage became the first priest. The church was not finished. The interior design was entrusted to a local artist, Prix de Rome, Mr. Louis Leygue, who expressed himself in the choir, the baptismal font, the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament and the crypt. Mrs. Anne Huet created the stained glass windows. Father Lepage would make a large part of them in his garage. At Christmas 1967, the first mass was celebrated. On May 12, 1968, Bishop Joseph Goupy came to consecrate the altar and bless the building. Work would continue and the history of the church did not end there.

This is a church dating from the 12th and 15th centuries. The nave of the church was paneled in the 15th century. A statue representing Saint Martin on horseback, sharing his cloak, was placed in a niche above the portal.

The Saint-Barthélémy church dates from the 12th century but was restored and enlarged in the 17th and then in the 19th century. The elegant bell tower, formed of a square tower, becomes octagonal at 20 m high. Small loophole-type windows light the belfry. It is topped by a dome, itself topped by a campanile and a lantern. It is considered a case study by schools of architecture. This church also contains several movable objects classified as Historic Monuments including Christ on the Cross, a polychrome wooden statue from the 17th century, two oils on canvas from the 17th century, a funerary plaque from 1674 by Michel de Verthamon, Knight of Malta, in stone and marble (epitaph in Latin and coat of arms) and a bronze bell, tuned in F, from 1580.

Very beautifully restored church with a beautiful courtyard.

The Saint-Lubin Church is a 12th century Romanesque church with arched windows, a wooden roof and a bell tower.

Vendôme benefits from an extraordinary heritage with numerous exceptional sites and monuments. The city is also renowned for the excellence of its artistic crafts. Crossed by the Loir, it is located in an environment that will delight nature lovers.