ÉGLISE DE L'IMMACULÉE CONCEPTION DE NOTRE-DAME

With its full name, Église de l'Immaculée Conception de Notre-Dame et de Saint-Michel, this church was commissioned by Anne d'Escala. Born in 1600, this extraordinary woman devoted her money and energy all her life to helping the underprivileged. In all, she was godmother to 38 children (and all 17 little girls were named Anne). In 1653, a flood on the Hers destroyed a church and its cemetery, so Anne set about rebuilding them. She financed the project, as indicated by the stone inlaid above the entrance portal, with the date 1664 as a marker. Anne was already old for her time, but she lived for another thirty years, reaching the incredible age of 94 for the 17th^century ! Yet this century was not spared by disease, notably the plague. The church is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and the Archangel Michael, who is responsible for weighing souls at Judgment Day and taking them to heaven. The church's magnificent altarpiece was listed as a Monument Historique in 1997. It is adorned with five paintings of saints, including Roch, prayed to against the plague, and Hubert, invoked against rabies. The altarpiece, which was deteriorating badly, has been undergoing restoration since early 2024 to restore it to its original beauty. Anne d'Escala donated her fortune to the underprivileged on her death, and is buried alongside her husband in Mirepoix's Cathedral of Saint-Maurice.