On September 21 and 22, during the Heritage Days, the “Friends of Maleville” association is offering a visit to the Sabadel church in the town of Maleville.
Away from the village, this church has been under restoration since 2002. Every summer, for two weeks in August, and for the past three years, two weeks in April, Les Amis de Maleville, supported by the national association “Rempart”, organize work camps for young volunteers, some of whom come from abroad, to learn stone cutting and assembly on the walls of the church.
The church of Sabadel, built in the 10th century, is a pre-Romanesque church in the commune of Maleville. Its square choir and its nave, which had rounded corners at the beginning, are among the oldest monuments in Rouergue. The choir, made of cut rubble, could be the remains of a Gallo-Roman temple or a watchtower, given the column bases reused in the construction of its walls.
In 1792, despite the protest of the 700 parishioners, the presbytery and its outbuildings were sold… The church operated until the beginning of the 20th century, but was deconsecrated in 1908.
In 1937, after the collapse of the roof, the Bishop of Rodez authorized the inhabitants to use the stones of the church as building material.
In 1993, Françoise Besson (who would later become the first secretary of the Friends of Maleville) showed a small group what remained of the ruins buried under thick vegetation.
Creation of the association
This was followed by the creation of the association on December 13, 1994, which will celebrate its 30th anniversary at the end of the year. Since then, a worksite of young volunteers has been organized every year to save this building.
During Heritage Day, several members of the association will be happy to welcome you to answer all your questions and tell you about the various works carried out since then.
You can find several photographs of the progress of the construction site. A moment in the history of the commune of Maleville which once had three churches/In the village, the church of St Pierre near the village cemetery, and that of Sab.
