SAUMUR
. Until the Revolution, Notre-Dame-de-Nantilly was the only parish in Saumur (Maine-
et-Loire). Its name appears for the first time in 849. Its Romanesque nave is composed of
five bays with barrel vaulting on rectangular beams (12th c.). Lateral walls are reinforced
by arcades. The windows display semicircular Romanesque arches. The transept, with a
narrow crossing, and the south aisle are in Flamboyant Gothic style (15th c.). The choir
of two bays with cylindrical vaulting is followed by an apse in cul-defour. A simple
façade, with a single door and window, is surmounted by a slightly raised tower.
The principal church in Saumur today is Saint-Pierre, begun in 1162. The choir, the
oldest part of the building, comprises one apse and two bays with ribbed vaulting. Large
niches punctuate the lower part of the walls; two-story windows illuminate the church.
Twin pillars support beams. The transept is covered by a ribbed cupola, and the arms
display ribbed vaulting. An apse, vaulted in cul-de-four, opens on each arm. The 13th-
century façade has a door ornamented with statues.
A castle, founded probably in the 10th century, is oneof the most impressive medieval
monuments in Saumur. A massive rectangular fortress with corner towers, it displays the
transition from military to domestic architecture. Despite its early foundation, no part of
the castle is older than the 13th century. An illustration painted by the Limbourg brothers
is found in the Très Riches Heures of John, duke of Berry, for the month of September.
E.Kay Harris
Landais, Hubert. Saumur et sa région. Paris: Delmas, 1959.
Mussat, A. Le style gothique de l’ouest de la France, XIIe-XIIIe siècles. Paris: Picard, 1963.
Rhein, André. “Saumur.” Congrès archéologique (Angers et Saumur) 77 (1910):3–32.
SAUVEGARDE
. The French crown issued lettres de sauvegarde in order to place some person, group,
corporate body, or land under its protection. The concept of royal protection had distant
roots in the king’s proprietary rights of the Frankish period. The late-medieval royal
safeguard, however, was an adaptation of a concept appearing in 13th-century canon
law—the conservator, who protected someone against injuries. Acceptance of royal
safeguard amounted to a recognition of royal sovereignty; violation came to be regarded
as a serious crime, a cas royal that would come directly under the king’s jurisdiction. To
signify that a place, such as a church, had come under the crown’s protection, royal
officers would affix batons embellished with the fleur-de-lis. Known as panonceaux,
these became the recognized symbols of royal safeguard. By the 14th century, the crown
extended safeguard to those who were appealing to the royal court. Because of its
implications for royal power and jurisdiction, expanding use of royal safeguard came
under fire, and Philip VI had to promise to restrict it to those who were weak and
defenseless.
Medieval france: an encyclopedia 1620