One street, 600 inhabitants and 1.5 million tourists annually - these are the statistics of the tiny town of Rocamadour, which is incredibly located on an almost sheer cliff. The first thought that arises after the shock of what he saw passes: couldn’t it be possible to find a more suitable and convenient place? Convenient - possible, but suitable - depending on what.
There are places on Earth that attract people. Which a person chooses contrary to all common sense, but obeying the meaning hidden from logic and understanding. Holy places or "places of Power" - they are called differently, but one thing is invariably - people go there. Some with prayer, others with a camera; someone for help, and someone for souvenirs …
Let's take a closer look at this town …
The town got its name in honor of the holy hermit Amadur, who was so in love with this rocky area that he lived here all his life. That is why the place got the name Rocamadour - "the rock of Amadur". True, some researchers identify the hermit with Zacchaeus - the biblical tax collector from Jericho, who left Palestine due to religious persecution and settled in these places.
No one can name the exact date of the foundation of the city. Rocamadour gained his fame in 1166, after the tomb with the imperishable relics of Saint Amadur was discovered here. Since then, pilgrims began to visit the city, among whom were monarchs, bishops and other noble persons. During the Religious Wars in France, the relics were destroyed. Now in the crypt of Saint Amadur there are only bone fragments.
Rocamadour consists of only two streets. But it has a vertical arrangement, and it can be conditionally divided into three levels: medieval, religious and castle.
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The medieval city is located at the lowest level and consists of a single street, Grand Rue (Big Street), which originates from the narrow gate of the Fig Tree. Several centuries ago, on both sides of the street there were inns for pilgrims. Now in their place are the houses of merchants, which have preserved their original appearance, several comfortable hotels and cozy restaurants.
The religious city is located at the middle level. This is the main part of Rocamadour. It is here that almost all the sights and church buildings are located: the Basilica of Saint-Sauveur, the crypt of Saint Amadour and numerous chapels. Ancient buildings are molded directly to the surface of a rocky cliff, which rises to a height of about 150 meters. A medieval staircase leads from the lower level to the middle one, the steps of which are thoroughly worn out by the feet of pilgrims. In the old days, pilgrims went up to the Notre Dame chapel, the main place of pilgrimage, on their knees, saying prayers. It is difficult to imagine this picture, because they had to climb 216 steps of a rather steep staircase. Now this ascent can be done by elevator.
The third and last level is completely occupied by the well-preserved Rocamadour castle. To get to it, you need to go through a few dozen more steps along a winding staircase with 14 intermediate platforms. The road to the castle is called the Way of Sorrow, or the Way of the Cross. She received these names due to the fact that chapels are installed on each of the sites, which symbolize 14 stops of Christ on the road to Calvary - or, in other words, the Passion of Christ and the last hours of His earthly life. At the top of the stairs is the Calvary cross. The castle, located on the upper plateau of the mountain, is a solid and well-balanced building. But after the religious level of the city, the castle no longer makes the proper impression. In addition, it is allegedly privately owned, and it is impossible to see it from the inside: access is open only to the observation deck and part of the courtyard.
Rocamadour, with its curved streets, has retained several fortified gates (porte Salmon, porte Cabilière, porte de l'hôpital, porte du figuier). A majestic staircase, which pilgrims used to climb on their knees (in our time this happens less often), leads from the square to the sanctuaries - the Basilica of Saint-Sauveur, the crypt of Saint Amadour (classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the chapels of Sainte-Anne, Saint-Blaise, Saint-Jean-Baptiste, Notre-Dame (where the statue of the black madonna is located) and Saint-Michel.
Here is another version of the name of the city: according to historians, the name Rocamadour is the medieval form of the original name "Rocamajor". “Roca” meant a rock shelter-type shelter, and the word “major” emphasized the large size of this shelter.
The area overlooking Rocamadour has the name "Hospitalet", which comes from the word "espitalet" meaning a small orphanage. This shelter was founded in 1095 by the lady Helene de Castelnau.
From the administrative center of the department, the city of Cahors, Rocamadour is separated by 36 kilometers of the road. Rocamadour is located on the right steep bank of the Alzou River in the immediate vicinity of the historical area of Périgord and not far from the Dordogne valley. The city is located in the depths of the regional natural zone Causses du Quercy (Quercy limestone plateau).
Numerous caves in Rocamadour served as a refuge for people even in the Paleolithic era, as evidenced by the rock carvings of the Mervey Cave. Another cave, Linar Cave, served as a dwelling place for people and an underground necropolis during the Bronze Age. The remains found there are placed in the Cabrere Museum and in the foyer of the Rocamadour City Hall.
During the Iron Age, tribes of Kadurk came here. In the VIII century BC. e. they conquered the territory of modern Law department with their iron weapons. In the course of construction work in our time, traces of a settlement in the Salvate Valley near the town of Cuzu were found. Oppidum was set up at the heights of the Alzou Gorge, below the course of the Tournefey River; probably he was related to the struggle of the Gauls against the Roman troops during the Gallic War.
There is no doubt that magic was a little involved in the appearance of Rocamadour. You just have to climb the dizzying steps to the castle, towering over the surrounding cliffs, to be convinced of this. The sword Durendal, no less legendary than its owner, the knight Roland, sticks out there from the fortress wall, and, like the famous Excalibre, no one can take it out. In the latter, however, one cannot be completely sure. While in Rocamadour there are still a number of miracles that many generations of people believed in long before our time.
We are talking about the Chapelle-Notre-Dame cathedral, built here in the XII-XVI centuries. The cathedral did not appear by chance - in 1166 a tomb with relics was discovered in Rocamadour. The imperishable body was excavated in the sanctuary of the Virgin Mary in front of the entrance to the wonderful chapel. The remains of Saint Amadur were removed from the ground and presented to the pilgrims. The relics were destroyed during the years of the religious wars in France, and in our time there are only fragments of the bone, exhibited in the crypt of St.
Rocamadour has existed exclusively as a holy place for centuries. Not only the cathedral was built here. A whole complex of structures appeared: the grotto of Miracles with cave paintings, the tomb of Saint Amadur, the Saint-Blaise chapel and the Saint-Jean-Baptiste chapel with a Gothic portal. And also the Basilica of Saint-Sauveur, where, as elsewhere in Rocamadour, architecture and nature are mixed - one of the walls here was replaced by a rock. Do not forget about the top of the hill, where the Calvary cross stands next to the castle, and the stairs to it symbolize the last journey of Jesus.
The three tiers of the medieval village of Rocamadour are said to reflect the position of the three estates of that era; chivalry was at the top, representatives of the clergy lived in the middle tier, and secular workers occupied the lower tier near the river.
A few sources mention the construction in 1105 of a small chapel on a rocky cliff, which was called "Rupis Amatoris". This site was located on the border between the lands of two Benedictine abbeys - Saint-Martin de Tulle and Saint-Pierre de Marciac. In the initial period of its history, Rocamadour was ruled by the Abbey of Tulle.
In 1112, the Abbot of Tulle Eble of Turen settled in Rocamadour. In 1119, the first donation from the Count of La Marsh was received here. In 1148, the first miracle was announced and crowds of pilgrims followed to worship the Virgin Mary, whose statue dates back to the 12th century.
Abbot of Tulle Jero Escorial, who held this post from 1152 to 1188, ordered the construction of religious buildings (sanctuaries) at the expense of pilgrims' donations. The cult buildings of Rocamadour were built in stages on a steep cliff ledge on the right side of the Alzou River. Construction work was completed at the end of the 12th century.
By this time, Rocamadour had already enjoyed European fame, as the "Book of Miracles of the XII century", written by a certain monk at the sanctuary, says about this, and many pilgrims came here. In 1159, the English king Henry II, the husband of Alienora of Aquitaine, arrived in Rocamadour to thank the Virgin Mary for her recovery.
In 1211, Arnold Amalric, papal legate of the Albigensian Crusade, spent the winter months in Rocamadour. Later, in 1291, Pope Nicholas IV bestowed three bulls of absolution for a year and forty days for visitors to Rocamadour. At the end of the 13th century, Rocamadour flourished and construction work was completed. The castle was defended by three towers, a wide moat and many sentries.
In 1317, the monks left Rocamadour and the place passed to the administration of a chapter of canons appointed by the bishop.
In the XIV century, Europe suffered a disastrous cold snap, mass famine and a series of epidemics, among which was the Black Death plague pandemic.
In 1427, restoration work began in Rocamadour, but there was not enough money or people. A huge rock fell on the Notre Dame Chapel, crushing it completely, and in 1479 it was rebuilt with the support of the Bishop Tulle Denis de Bart.
The canons, in their petition to Pope Pius IV in 1563, spoke of the complete plundering of the shrine. The relics defiled and destroyed, including the body of Saint Amadur. According to witnesses, the Protestant captain Jean Bessonier smashed the relics with a blacksmith's hammer, saying: "If you do not want to burn, I will split you." Captains Bessonier and Duras were able to obtain 20,000 livres in favor of the army of the Great Condé, having plundered all the treasures of the Notre Dame chapel in Rocamadour, collected since the beginning of the XII century
Rocamadour was almost depopulated after the Great French Revolution and began to revive again at the end of the 19th century. Today, however, like hundreds of years before that, it is a tiny town, in which there are only two narrow, stone-paved streets. Two rows of red tiled roofs stretch along the rock, into which houses seem to have grown … One glance at this wonderful place is enough for the image of the old town to remain in the heart for a long time …
By the beginning of the 19th century, the sanctuaries of Rocamadour were in a state of complete decline, trees sprouted through the steps of the stairs, most of the merchants left Rocamadour. Three sanctuaries continued to operate (the churches of Saint-Sauveur and Saint-Amadour, the Chapel of Notre Dame), two sanctuaries were in deplorable condition (the chapels of Saint Michel and Saint Blaise), and two others were destroyed (the chapels of Sainte Anne and Saint Jean-Baptiste). The roof of the Saint-Sauveur church was in need of complete replacement, its southern wall tilted 30 centimeters under the weight of overloaded vaults. In 1831, the French writer and archaeologist Jacques-Antoine Delpont wrote: "Apparently, this chapel will not live long."
During this period, the political will to preserve its historical heritage appeared in France. On April 13, 1830, the Prefect of the Law Department wrote a letter to the Minister of the Interior asking for immediate assistance. Attached to this letter was an estimate of 8,500 francs, drawn up as early as 1822 by the Abbot of Cayo. This request remained unanswered. A list of historical monuments in the Department of Law was formed, and the Rocamadour chapel was in the first place in it, but their support was not funded by either the state or the municipality of Rocamadour.
In early 1855, Bishop Jean-Jacques Bardoux of Cahors came up with the idea of organizing a large lottery to raise funds for the restoration. The Ministry of Internal Affairs obliged the organizers to make a preliminary estimate and develop a work plan. The architect of the department executed these documents and estimated the approximate cost of 318,820 francs.
Issued three lottery draws; in December 1856, as well as June and December 1857. The organizers issued 600,000 lottery tickets worth 1 franc, but only 84,624 francs were collected, which is a quarter of the required amount.
Bishop Bardou commissioned Abbot Jean-Baptiste Cheval, architect and archaeologist for the Diocese of Montauban, to direct the work, and work began in 1858. In the absence of state funding and in order to avoid additional costs, the bishop refused to control the work carried out by the national "Inspectorate of Historical Monuments"; Inspection's indignation was managed by the prefect of the Luo Department.
Construction work covered the castle and the entire medieval part of Rocamadour. As construction progressed, Abbot Cheval had to solve many extraordinary problems:
The municipality ignored this warning, and on February 3, 1865, a landslide occurred, destroying the barn and cellar of the innkeeper Lafon, and demolished a small railroad and construction fence. A lawsuit was filed against the municipality and the pilgrim reception service. On March 03, 1868, despite technical arguments, the court found the clergy guilty, ordering them to pay compensation to the injured innkeeper and build a retaining wall.
In the late summer of 1872, the restoration work at Rocamadour was completed.
Most of all, the city is famous for the famous sanctuary (sacred place) of the Black Madonna. It is to her that pilgrims from all over the world go, overcoming the difficult path. The Church of Notre Dame, which houses the main shrine of the city, was built in 1479, and the Black Madonna itself, according to legend, was carved from walnut wood by Saint Amadur himself.
The statue of the Madonna has darkened with time and has absorbed the soot of candles and lamps constantly burning around it. In addition, in the Middle Ages, she was dressed in silver clothes, and silver also left dark marks on the tree. It is believed that the statue of the Black Madonna has miraculous and healing powers, especially it patronizes sailors and fishermen. They say that during a disaster, the sailors of a sinking ship pray to Madonna, and she helps them. In the chronicle of 1172, written by Benedictine monks, there is a description of 126 miracles performed by the Madonna. Under the vaults of the chapel, where the altar of the Black Madonna is located, hangs an ancient bell dating from the 8th century. They say that when a miracle occurs, the bell spontaneously, without anyone's intervention, rings, informing about the incident. The inhabitants of Rocamadour, hearing the bell ringing, mark this event in a special book. Some of the rescued sailors, coming here to thank Madonna, checked the date of the shipwreck with the entries in the bell ringing book - and the dates always coincided!
In the temple, you can still see many gifts offered to the Madonna. Among them are marine caps, models of ships and marble plaques with gratitude. The stories of the miracles of the Black Madonna for centuries have attracted crowds of pilgrims to Rocamadour, among whom were Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II, Louis IX and Louis XI.
An interesting, but rather gloomy fresco painting has been preserved on the outer walls of the temple. One of the images is a battle of skeletons. It seems completely strange and inappropriate. Although, most likely, the plots are echoes of wars: during the Hundred Years War, the city was plundered by the British and desecrated during the Religious Wars by the Cathars. However, the Black Madonna and the buildings themselves have survived and are well preserved. Every year on September 8, festivities are held in honor of the main shrine of the city, attracting thousands of pilgrims and tourists.
For centuries, parishioners of Notre Dame Chapel have seen the sword stuck in the wall. It allegedly belonged to Roland himself. The strength of this medieval fearless hero lay in the hilt of a battle sword, where several relics were kept: the point of the spear that wounded Jesus Christ on the cross, a piece of the Virgin Mary's clothing, the tooth of St. Peter, the blood of St. Basil and the hair of St. Denis. The sword is called Durendal (from dur - "hard" or from the Old Norse dyrum - "precious"). There are two legends about its origin. According to the first, the sword belonged to the Trojan hero Hector, and the second legend says that the angel of the Lord handed it over to Charlemagne, who presented it to his nephew Count Roland for the feat in the battle against the Saracens in the Pyrenees.
In the medieval epic "Song of Roland" it is said that before his death, Roland tried to break the sword against a stone so that it would not fall on the enemies, but Durendal was too strong. And then the knight threw him away from the battlefield, and he, having flown a great distance, pierced the rock, around which Rocamadour was later built.
However, some scholars believe that Roland's sword cannot be in the chapel, since the legendary knight of Charlemagne died in August 778 in a battle with the Basques in the Ronselval Gorge, which is quite far from Rocamadour, several hundred kilometers. Rumors of Durendal stuck in the wall appeared in the middle of the 7th century, after the song of Roland was written. Apparently, the monks used the legend to attract pilgrims to these places.
Since 2011, a remake has been in the chapel, and Durendal himself has been sent to the Paris Museum of the Middle Ages.
In a dedication to her poem Solitude, English writer Vita Sackville-West cited Rocamadour as her inspiration.
Rocamadour in the 20th century inspired the Argentine-French writer Julio Cortazar, who lived in France for some time and wrote in Spanish about the life of immigrants, foreigners and tourists. In the experimental novel The Classics Game, the heroine of the Magician has a baby named Rocamadour who died in her sleep.
Rocamadour has a post office and many retail outlets.
Another attraction of Rocamadour is the local goat cheese Rocamadour. It is served in all restaurants, and for those who are especially interested, they offer excursions to farms, where you can admire the well-groomed French goats and watch the process of making cheese. Best to drink with Kahors wines - the nearest wine-growing region.
