St. Peter's Church

The Saint-Pierre church is a Catholic parish church located in Béthisy-Saint-Pierre, France. It is a vast and complex building of essentially late Romanesque and early Gothic style, whose eastern parts have been altered several times. The nave, the aisles, most of the choir and the south side chapel transformed into a sacristy belong to the late Romanesque period. The aisles and the large arcades of the nave are the oldest parts that have remained authentic. Here archaic and innovative tendencies meet, with on the one hand, square pillars and semicircular arches, without the slightest capital, and on the other hand, ribbed vaults of the Lombard school. No other church in the Valois region has comparable side aisles. The nave was very heavily restored at the end of the 19th century, before it was classified as a historical monument by decree of May 7, 1913, from which it was excluded. The upper parts have therefore been denatured, but the original plan and elevation are nevertheless preserved. The choir is just as singular as the aisles, as it is much lower and less wide than the nave, while the construction of the two respective parts is only a few years apart. For the last time in the department of Oise, a choir has been vaulted in barrel and in cul-de-four. The quality of the sculpture of the capitals has been praised by several authors. Another remarkable element of the church is the western portal of the first quarter of the 13th century, flanked by two groups of four columns supporting a quadruple toric archivolt; however, this portal is hidden under a stone porch of the 14th century, also excluded from the classification. The silhouette of the church is dominated by a flamboyant Gothic bell tower, whose spire reaches a height of 48 m. Two chapels to the south of the nave are of the same style. Rich in history, Saint-Pierre church keeps its place in the life of the village, and it has the privilege to welcome masses every Sunday at 10:15 am and is part of the parish of the Automne Valley.