Saint-Julien church

This is the Saint-Julien Church of Tours. Legend has it that in the 6th century, Clovis decided to erect a church to celebrate his victory over the Visigoths. The church became an abbey with the construction of a monastery around it. If it remains standing today, it’s undoubtedly a survivor! Indeed is seems to have seldom enjoyed periods of peace! Attacked by the Normans in 853, the abbey was rebuilt, then damaged and rebuilt again during the siege of Tours in 1043. Then nature got involed, a hurricane caused the nave to collapse in 1224! A few centuries later, during the Revolution, it was sold as national property. The innkeeper who bought it, knocked down a wall and turned the place into a coach park! It wasn’t until 1846 that Prosper Mérimée managed to buy it back on behalf of the archdiocese and returned it to its Catholic church status. Ironically, poor Prosper gave his name only to the parking lot behind the church ! But the story doesn’t end there! During World War II, Tours was a symbolic city that suffered greatly from bombings of both sides. When the Allies blew up the bridge over the Loire to stop the German advance, all the stained glass windows exploded as well! So, it’s quite something for the Saint-Julien Church to be standing before you today, and just because of that, it deserves our attention and a bit of respect. In what remains of the old abbey, the Museum of Trades has been set up, classified as a museum of France. Definitely worth a visit if you want to learn more about companionage, this method of philosophical teaching at the origin of professions, classified as intangible cultural heritage of humanity by UNESCO. Companionage involves an apprentice, known as a “compagnon” in French, learning from a master craftsman through practical experience, often traveling and working alongside the master to gain skills and knowledge in a particular trade.