A little history of Saint-Pierre cathedral in Angoulême
And also
The tops
A first wooden church dedicated to saint Pierre and saint Paul was raised in the middle of the 4th century. Destroyed by a fire in 981, Grimoard built the new one, dedicated in 1017.
But it became too small for all the believers! So bishop Girard and canon Archambaud raised the cathedral in the beginning of the 12th century: choir, apse, transept and a part of the façade date back to that time. Just a part? Why? Because there were troubles on the building site!
In fact, bishop complained about count of Lusignan, who forbade importation of water, wood and stones, and even kept architects away from the building site!
Anyway, our cathedral was abandoned during the Hundred Years War. The bell-tower was damaged in 1569 but then it was restored by Jean Mesneau in the beginning of the 17th century.
Nowadays, it's the nicest church in Charente, with its 72 metres long vaulted nave!