Home : History : Background History : Footnote 8

From Michel Lorrain. Follows my file on Saint Pierrat, with a few more details.

The first church.

It was the Lords who first build churches in the villages which they owned; This leads us to think that this was the case for St Pierrat church.

The Lord founder, his heirs or representatives had the right to assign a priest. It was called the “patronage” or the “droit de collation = right of advowson?). This right which was in great demand had the advantage to reinforce the power of the Lord in the parish. The right of “patronage” could belong to an individual or to a body or a society and was transmitted like all other right or property.

Anciently, the religion was holding an important place in the life of our elders. The entire population of a village went to the weekly mass and vespers. The ritual of the ceremonies was scrupulously respected, some processions and rogations-week (public prayers and processions) were occasions to manifest collectively devotion through the cemetery, the streets and paths of the village.

The religious maintained in the villagers the fear of the Last Judgment and contributed to the morality and the preservation of good morality.

The Lord was interested in having a church on his land, because it was a place indispensable to exercise the religion. The church building could also - in case of need - serve as meeting place for the (plaids annaux = annual pleas, court ) or various meetings where the future of the community was decided, in case these meetings could not be held in the castle.

When the people were gathering for the weekly mass there was also an opportunity for various decisions such as the election of the church “echevins* = aldermen”, and also the midwife. The church, place of gathering of all without exception, was really the heart of the village, but for St Pierrat, the heart of two villages.

* The church aldermen were four or five (later they were called the Council of “fabrique”) and they had the responsibility to administers the temporal affairs of the parish.

Canonical visits of the churches.

In the XVIII century, the bishop required that a status of the spiritual and temporal affairs of the parishes of his diocese be established. It was an opportunity to look at the state of the building, of it’s ornaments and furniture. The bishop delegated to the archbishop the care of each building and send him a report. By the same token, the visitor was to verify that the revenues of the parish were enough for the priest to live on and that the church funds were not misappropriated. He also inquired about the problems that existed between the population and the priest.

The study of these proceedings of the canonical visit shows how the Lord and the bishop shared power on the church of the village. The Lord named the priest as he saw fit, but the bishop watched that all things were done according to the canonical rules. He had the power to pronounce an interdict on the church or the cemetery according to his good pleasure.

14 October 1686, Canonical visit of the church of St-Pierrat by Messire (BOUSSE ?), priest of Ste-Geneviêve and archbishop of Mousson.

“ ... according to the adjunction of Master Nicolas LAMBERT, priest of Ville-au-Val and according to the “ordinance of Monseigneur the bishop of Metz, we have visited the “vicarage of Ville-au-Val close to the church, in presence of Claude ANTOINE, master alderman, of Jean PIERSON, alderman, and of Jean BRETTON, churchwarden, all residing in this place. They told us that they have seen “the vicarage, ( which is presently in ruins,) when it was in a very good state and inhabited”, at that time by master Jean PETITPAIN, at the time priest of Ville-au-Val. It consisted of:

1 room to make (file? =thread?)

1 room to bake bread

1 (poil ? = must be a room?) joining the first one

1 cellar for the wine

1 barn to house the tithing (**)

Some stables for the cattle

Some attics above

1 little courtyard in the middle of the residence

1 fountain which ran in the middle of the said courtyard (***)

(** This vicarage appears to have had the same importance as a small farm. This is explained by the fact that the priest received tithing from two parishes, therefore he needed enough room to house the share of the harvest that he received from his flocks.)

(*** The fountain running in the middle of the courtyard, appears to have been the origin of the degradation that took place on the walls of the church, such as is written in the request of 1696.)

1696 - Request from the inhabitants of Bezaumont against Dame Agnes de CLEVON****, widow of Sir de LOPES GALLO, tithe collector of Ville-au-Val and of Bezaumont; this request follows the sentence pronounced against them the 22 November 1694, which ordered that the church of St-Pierrat be eliminated.

( **** The Dame de CLEVON - in reality: CLEVAN) had sufficient influence on the bishops to obtain the interdict of the church of St Pierrat.)

At that time, Nicolas LAMBERT was priest of these two parishes:

They explained that:

“ St-Pierrat was the mother church of two parishes; that it was located on a “small elevation between these two villages which are no farther away from each other than a shotgun. The territory on which it is build belongs in part to “France and Lorraine*****. The vicarage which is ruined by the neglect of the “uncle of the modern priest (sic) is located on the French territory, and if this is true “the priests that resided there previously were sending their (livestock?) to the flock of those concerned. The village of Bezaumont belongs to the ancient domain of Verdun, and has for it’s Lord the abbot of Verdun; therefore those concerned are French. Ville-au-Val belongs to the marquisate of Pont-à-Mousson, which means that “by a pious discretion, this church has been built on a neutral piece of land, in order to avoid to one or the other village, the expense and weight of two vicarages, and to gather these two groups of people on the spiritual side, in an inconspicuous place equally free.

“Nevertheless those appealing from Ville-au-Val want to leave this mother church to get a step-mother and change it’s temple into a prison or fortified castle. Those appealing are of three groups: the lady of the place, the priest and the inhabitants of Ville-au-Val. The lady is tithe collector of Ville-au-Val and of Bezaumont and is forced to repair the transept. She proposed the transfer of this church to her castle of Ville-au-Val being in favor of transforming the chapel of the castle rather than repair the transept of the church.

The priest sees the advantage, for him who is originated from Villé, that he will be able to live at his father’s home. This latter is a laborer in Villé and wants peace and quiet.

It belongs to “the pastor to search his flock, rather than the flock to search their pastor.”

The parishioners of Ville-au-Val claim:

“That their church was sitting on a mountain, and it is close to fall in ruins because of the cavities caused by the two fountains running under the foundations and there is no more vicarage and this church being alone is exposed to plunder as this has already happened previously. They accept that the cemetery continues for the burial of the parishioners of both villages.

The expert that was called estimates the repair of the said vicarage to be 3000 pounds.

The inhabitants of Bezaumont remind you that because they had previously repaired the church, there exists a judgment dated 22 November 1694 which gives to the inhabitants of Bezaumont, the right to go to their church to hear the religious office. As French people (Lorraine was actually attached to France by 1696, but we have to recognize that it was not so in the spirit of the people of Bezaumont and of Ville-au-Val), they refused to be submitted to a foreign domination which later on could become their enemy.

Should the people of a village go in the prison of a castle of Lorraine to hear the religious service, when during several centuries, they have been going in a free place consecrated to God? (This proves that the church of St Pierrat existed prior to the Xvth century)

They say that the absence of steps to the altar is not an obstacle to celebrate the mass.

They say that the road is not bad, neither long.

Le 24 October 1693, Jean GENOT, archbishop of Mousson comes to pay an official visit to St-Pierrat, following which is written:

Bezaumont is a French village on a separate territory from Ville-au-Val.

The tower and the vicarage are in France and the rest in Lorraine.

The church is alone with the priest house: the access is forbidden for the past three years.

The tower of the church is above the entrance of the church and towards Bezaumont.

The 28 June 1700, at the request of the inhabitants of Ville-au-Val and of Bezaumont, the same Jean GENOT archbishop of Mousson comes on an official visit to the church. He acknowledges that it is still in as good a state as when the mass was celebrated: it has not been desecrated, but only forbidden for the past 9 or 10 years by Monseigneur of Aubusson, bishop of Metz, and it has not been abandoned to the passers by nor animals.

22 March 1719 the bishop of Metz has bestowed the church under the patronage of St-Pierre-au-Val, communly said: Ville-au-Val de Ste Marie, and it’s annexes to Messire Gerome BERNIER vicar of the parish St Livier of Metz, , and assigned there after the death of Messire Nicolas LAMBERT. Here is what happened when he arrived:

((I was transported by horse to the said village of Ville au Val Ste Marie. Not finding the former priest who lived in the village (NDLR: his father), I rang the bells to call the population to the church and presented my orders to take possession of the vicarage; in presence of Henry THOUVENIN mayor of the community and of Jean VANSON, vinegrower.))

In the same year, the bishop is very upset against the inhabitants of Ville-au-Val who refused the entrance of their church to Sir BERNIER.

In 1718, Pierre JOLY, is mentioned as the chaplain of the Castle chapel of Ville au Val erected under the patron of St-Georges.

(This does not mean that this Pierre JOLY was the priest of Ville-au-Val. He was only titular of an alter in the chapel of the castle. Pont a Mousson, notaires 14 E 78 No. 1627 - 17 February 1635 Laurent CHEMINOT mayor of Ville au Val sold to the Fraternity of N.D. in the church of St Pierrat ... Pont a Mousson, notaires 14 E 75 No 1104 - 19 July 1671 The church of St Pierrat was located in an area where there were vineyards. Some of these were still waste land in 1671.)

On the 6 August 1723, a bull confirms the privilege granted by Leopold duke of Lorraine to the prior of the Abbey of St Paul of Verdun order of the reformed Prémontrés, as being the only big tithe-gatherer of the area of Bezaumont, in other words Mouzay, except for about “sixteen days” of land.

In 1726, the inhabitants of Bezaumont claim that their church is in ruins and forbidden to divine worship and that the tithe-gatherer do not repair it even though they are supposed to. (Mark of François MAURY. “ F M”)

The church of Saint-Pierrat is definitively forbidden to worship, but the conflict between the inhabitants of the two competitive villages is far from being settled and will continue for a long time.

In 1732, the bishop of Metz, after inquiry, decides that:

Landremont belongs to the parish of Ville-au-Val.

The annex of Loisy belongs to Ste-Geneviève

A vicar will reside in Loisy.

A vicar will reside in Landrement and will be under the parishes of Ste Geneviève and Ville-au-Val.

In 1739, Messire Jean GEORGES priest of Ste-Geneviève, Loisy, Bezaumont and Landremont signals to Monseigneur de la RICHARDIE bishop of oMetz, that for the past 40 years, his annexes are in trouble... He asks that the priest BERNIER, priest of Ville-au-Val choose Ville-au-Val or Bezaumont, annex which alternates with Ville-au-Val and Scarpone.

In 1743, the same Jean GEORGES, in a letter addressed to his bishop, speaks of : ((those of Bezaumont who are continually perplexed in their conscience regarding the knowledge of who is their real pastor ...))

25 August 1750 - Report of the canonical visit of the church of Ville-au-Val

“The parish church being completely ruined and forbidden for 25 years ago, the “service will be held in the chapel of the castle. There are 45 families in Ville-au-Val and 28 in Bezaumont, therefore 200 adults and 60 children who can be taught. The inhabitants and the priest wish very much to have a church. The inhabitants of “Bezaumont go to the service in Ste-Geneviève and Ville au Val, according to their wish.

Again from Michel Lorrain.

In the accounts of the abbeys of the diocese of Metz, abbot Dorvaux who extracted them, mentioned three annotations as follows:

1 - We have said that Bezaumont and Marivaux (Cassini’s map show Mérinveau) depended of Ville-au-Val: it is what Durival and Stemer have printed, and which appears to be reasonable , since the church of St Pierre was not in the village of Ville-au-Val, but half way between Bezaumont; nevertheless a visit of 1754 attaches Bezaumont and Landremont to Ste Geneviève, but a report of the diocese copied by D. Tabouillot mentions it exclusively to Ste-Geneviève; but the situation of 1754 was not normal, because the ruins of Ville-au-Val forbidden since 30 years before had probably brought a dispersion of the parishes; had this become the regular condition later on nothing proves this. In 1711, the priest shows in Bezaumont a chapel under the patronage of St-Urbain, another in “Merevaux, farm belonging to the English Benedictine of Dieurlouard”, finally the hermitage of St-Blaise.

2 - The priest shared with the Lords of Ville-au-Val, one third of the tithing of Villers-les-Prudhommes. He also had a right to the tithing of Belleau, Loisy and Ste-Geneviève. The tithing of Bezaumont went 3/4 to Mrs de St Paul of Verdun, the rest was divided by county between the cathedral, the Lords of Morey and of Belleau, and the Lords and priest of Ville-au-Val.

3 - the chapel of the castle had been authorized the 22 march 1559 in favor of Catherine d’Haraucourt, in 1597 the foundation of a mass per week brought it to be brought to be permitted to received benefit: it is in 1597 that is placed for the first time under the name of St-Louis.

© 2004, 2005 Jean-Marc Samson and Yvette Longstaff