Basilica of Saint-Michel-des-Lions

A granite hall church in the late Gothic style (14th-15th centuries), topped by a typical Limousin bell tower, 70 meters high and adorned with a copper ball in 1824. Four corner turrets mark the start of the octagonal upper floors.
The current church was rebuilt on the site of a chapel dedicated very early to the Archangel Saint Michael on a high point in the city, along which the old Roman road from Lyon to Saintes passed. It houses the relics of Saint Martial, the city's first bishop, and Saint Loup, his successor, saved from the revolutionaries of 1793. That year, the church was declared a "Temple of Reason."
The head (skull) of Saint Martial, patron saint of the city, is shown to the people every seven years during a solemn display, and his bust framed by the letters S and M still constitutes the "furniture" of the coat of arms of Limoges.

Beautiful church with great stained glass windows, we would not have guessed that. We were totally overwhelmed.
Two stone lions stand guard at the entrance to the church, but they are very weathered.

In France there are 173 basilicas. Saint-Michel-des-Lions becomes the 174th", explains Father François Renard. At the head of the Saint-Martial parish, which includes, in addition to Saint-Michel, the churches of Saint-Joseph and Saint-Pierre-du-Queyroix, he learned the news on February 2, 2023.Noting that there was no basilica in Limousin, Monsignor Bozo, Bishop of Limoges, launched the procedure in 2020. The process was long and laborious. First, he made his request to all the bishops of France. 97% responded favorably to this request.Then he sought the agreement of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, placed under the authority of a cardinal prefect. With the help of Mathias Martin, a layman, member of the sacred art commission in Limoges, Father Renard, the bishop and all the parish's vital forces responded to a questionnaire in Latin.They drew up an inventory of the monument and created a complete list of the movable and liturgical heritage contained in this place. Sent to Rome in April 2021, this document took a long time to return to Limoges. In November, Monsignor Bozo, passing through the Vatican, relaunched the prelates. A tenacity that proved to be profitable.If the cathedral remains the mother church of a city, the basilica is, for tourists and pilgrims, a reference. To obtain this title, the building must be built on a tomb that is very strong in terms of symbolism and commemoration.
Saint-Michel houses the tomb of Saint Martial, thirteenth apostle of Aquitaine and above all the first bishop of Limoges. Thus, Saint-Michel is linked to the universal church of Rome.As luck would have it, it became a basilica when the 2023 ostensions began on March 19. That day, during the flag-raising ceremony, François Renard read the decree during the mass. The blessing will then follow.
Believers or not, the people of Limoges are attached to what must now be called the basilica. In the 6th century, there was a small chapel dedicated to Saint Michael and John the Baptist on this site. Founded in 535 by Rorice II, Bishop of Limoges, it was located in the middle of a cemetery, guarded by granite lions. They symbolize the protective deities because they are reputed to sleep with one eye and watch over sleeping souls.The work began in 1364 and was completed in 1455, the year of the consecration. In 1373, construction began on the bell tower, which was 70.91 metres high at the time. Saint-Michel-des-lions has a particularity. The pillars inside are not straight.
Named "Temple of Reason" during the Revolution, the church has a rich heritage of buildings. The stained glass windows are superb. The triptych on the ostensions dates from 1875. It shows Clement V, Edward I of England, Philip the Bold, son of Saint Louis, and Alienor of Aquitaine bowing before the head of Saint Martial.
The basilica should benefit from greater visibility. The town signs will be modified and inside, the information on hunting and the tomb will be denser. Its bas-reliefs show the most significant episodes in the life of the holy founder of Limoges. All of this will be highlighted. In short! Tourists and pilgrims will soon have the "basilica instinct".Jean-François Julien
Le Populaire du Centre