ClasséChurch · protected 1840Église Saint-Sauveur-et-Saint-MartinPhoto: Mattana · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Enceinte fortifiée de la Ville · Photo: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 4.013historic monuments
History of Saint-Macaire · Monuments historiques
13 historic monuments and a protected historic area since 2010
The Culture ministry lists 13 historic monuments in Saint-Macaire: 5 classé (France’s highest heritage protection) and 8 inscrit (the second level). The oldest date from the 10th century. That’s 66 for every 10,000 residents; the median compared French town has 2.5. We have photos of 12 of them.
Monuments historiques
13
66 per 10,000 residents
median compared town 2.5
median compared town 2.5
Classé
5
the highest protection
Inscrit
8
the second level
Oldest part
10th c.
of any listed monument
Homes before 1919
33%
median compared town 7.4%
In pictures
Saint-Macaire in 12 photos
Nearly every classé monument, photographed. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Église Saint-Sauveur-et-Saint-MartinClassé
Maison dite Relais Henri IVClassé
Maison MessidanClassé
Maison forte dite Château de TardeClassé
Ancien cloîtreInscrit+7See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its license; names open the monument’s page.
Protected area
Saint-Macaire has had a protected historic area since 2010
Sites patrimoniaux remarquables on the Culture ministry’s list, with the plan in force.
| Area | Created as | Plan in force |
|---|---|---|
| SPR75-94 | ZPPAUP July 25, 2010 | AVAP (heritage area rules) April 10, 2019 |
A site patrimonial remarquable protects a whole area rather than one building: inside it, building work follows the area’s own plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
The list gives no boundaries, so the map can’t show the area.
Map
Where Saint-Macaire’s monuments stand
Every monument with a point on the ministry’s list; the larger, darker dots are classé.
ClasséInscritWithin 400 m of Maison forte dite Château de Tarde
5 of 5classé monuments stand within 400 m of Maison forte dite Château de Tarde, with 13 of the town’s 13 monuments.
Tap a dot to open the monument’s page: its record, photo and the monuments around it.
13 monuments by protection
5 Classé8 Inscrit
Classé is the higher protection: any work on the building needs the State’s permission. Work on an inscrit building must be declared to the State in advance. Around both, building work in sight of the monument (usually within 500 m) needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
Points as the ministry gives them: a monument spread over several plots has one point.
Classé
5 classé monuments in Saint-Macaire
Classé is France’s highest protection for a building, held by about a third of the monuments on the list. 2 of the 5 are protected in part only (a façade, a roof, a room). Each card opens the monument’s page.
ClasséTown walls · protected 1915Enceinte fortifiée de la VillePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
ClasséFortified house · protected 1997Maison forte dite Château de TardePhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Classé
ClasséHouse · protected 1973Maison dite Relais Henri IVPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Inscrit
8 inscrit monuments in Saint-Macaire
Inscrit is the second level of protection: the building is worth keeping, and any work on it must be declared.
InscritHouse · protected 1926Maison à baies géminées trilobéesPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritHouse · protected 1941Maison du 15e sièclePart of the building is protectedPhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritHouse · protected 1973Maison attenante à la maison dite Relais Henri IVPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritHouse · protected 1973Maison attenante à la maison dite Relais Henri IVPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
InscritHouse · protected 2002Maison dite Maison de GassiesPhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Inscrit
InscritHouse · protected 1935Maisons, place du MarchéPart of the building is protectedPhoto: Henry Salomé · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
House · protected 1926Maison, rue des BarresPart of the building is protected
What’s protected
Most of Saint-Macaire’s monuments are houses and homes
Each monument under the main domain Mérimée gives it.
Houses & homes10
Religious buildings2
Military & fortified1
Houses & homes: 10 of 13 monuments (77%). 2 are religious buildings, 1 of them classé.
Mérimée files each monument under one main domain: a château with its chapel counts once.
How old
How old Saint-Macaire’s monuments are
Each monument once, by the oldest part the list dates.
Prehistory & Antiquity to the 4th c.0
Middle Ages 5th–15th c.8
16th to 18th century Renaissance to Revolution4
19th century 1801–19000
20th century and later since 19010
8 of 12 dated monuments have parts from before 1500. The oldest dated: Maison à baies géminées trilobées (Middle Ages). 1 monument has no date on the list.
When protected
3 of Saint-Macaire’s monuments were protected in 1973
Monuments by the year they were first protected.
1840186018801900192019401960198020002020
First protected, in 1840: Église Saint-Sauveur-et-Saint-Martin. That was France’s first list of monuments historiques, drawn up in Prosper Mérimée’s time as inspector. 3 were protected in 1973 alone. None has been added since 2011.
Age of homes
33% of homes in Saint-Macaire were built before 1919
Main homes by when they were finished, beside the median compared French town (the tick).
33%
Before 1919
7.8%
1919–45
12%
1946–70
11%
1971–90
19%
1991–2005
16%
2006 on
Saint-MacaireMedian compared French town
33% of its main homes were built before 1919; the median compared French town has 7.4%. More of them were finished before 1919 than in any other period (33%).
INSEE, census 2023: main homes (résidences principales) only; second homes and empty homes aren’t dated.
Neighbors
Historic monuments in the towns around Saint-Macaire
In brief
Saint-Macaire in brief
The record in Saint-Macaire starts with Maison à baies géminées trilobées, which dates from the 10th century. All told, the list holds 13 historic monuments, 5 of them classé, including Enceinte fortifiée de la Ville. Of its homes, 33% were built before 1919, against 7.4% in the median compared French town. Its classé monuments cluster together: 5 of them stand within 400 m of Maison forte dite Château de Tarde.
Part of it has been a site patrimonial remarquable since 2010. Most entries on the list, 77%, are houses and homes. Most of its dated monuments come from the Middle Ages: 8 of 12. Beyond that, François Bergoeing (1750) and Jean-Baptiste Pujoulx (1762) were born here before 1900.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Monuments historiques. France protects buildings at two levels. Classé, the higher (about a third of the list), means any work needs the State’s permission; inscrit means work must be declared to the State in advance. The Culture ministry’s Mérimée base lists every protected building, and this page counts them.
- Partly protected. Many entries protect part of a building only (its façades and roofs, a staircase, a painted room). Each counts as one monument, like a fully protected one.
- Where a monument is counted. In the commune named on its protection, moved to today’s commune where communes have since merged. A monument listed for several communes counts in each.
- Sites patrimoniaux remarquables. Since 2016 France’s protected historic areas (the former secteurs sauvegardés, ZPPAUP and AVAP) share one name. Inside one, building work follows the area’s plan and needs the agreement of the architecte des Bâtiments de France.
- What isn’t here. Protected objects (furniture, organs, paintings), old buildings with no protection, UNESCO World Heritage listings and labels such as “Plus Beaux Villages de France” aren’t on this list, so this page doesn’t count them.
- No History Grade yet. Everything on this page is described, not graded: France’s History Grade isn’t built yet.
Questions about the history of Saint-Macaire
How many historic monuments are there in Saint-Macaire?
The Culture ministry lists 13 historic monuments in Saint-Macaire: 5 classé and 8 inscrit.
Which monuments in Saint-Macaire are classé?
5, among them Église Saint-Sauveur-et-Saint-Martin, Enceinte fortifiée de la Ville, Maison forte dite Château de Tarde, Maison Messidan and Maison dite Relais Henri IV.
How old are the monuments of Saint-Macaire?
The oldest parts of its listed monuments date from the 10th century.
Is Saint-Macaire a protected historic area?
Yes: part of Saint-Macaire has been a site patrimonial remarquable since 2010.
When were monuments in Saint-Macaire first protected?
The first in 1840, the latest in 2002.
How old are the homes in Saint-Macaire?
33% of its main homes were built before 1919 (median compared French town: 7.4%).
France has no History Grade yet: this page describes, it doesn’t grade.
Sources: Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée base on POP (immeubles protégés au titre des monuments historiques), October 2026 · Ministère de la Culture, sites patrimoniaux remarquables, October 2026 · INSEE, census 2023 (main homes by build period) · Wikidata and Wikipedia (people born here) · Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata (photos of the monuments, each with its own credit and license) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 9, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.