Clovis, king of the Franks, was baptized and converted to the Christian religion on December 25, 496 at the cathedral of Reims by Bishop Remy after his victory over the Alamans at the battle of Tolbiac (Zutphen, south of Cologne) , thus largely contributing to Christianize the region.
Clovis I becomes the first monarch of a long line of kings of France.
The Saint-Rémy church is one of the oldest in Troyes: its existence has been proven since the 10th century.
It is then outside the walls of the city and depends on the canons of the cathedral. Encompassed in the new enclosure built in the 13th century. the church then undergoes multiple expansions and transformations. It also receives new stained glass windows paid for by wealthy Trojan families.
Its 12th century bell tower was renovated in 1360. Its slate spire 62 meters high is twisted which allows it better resistance to the winds. This technique is a real architectural feat in the 14th century!
The 15th century portal is sheltered under a wooden porch which replaced in the 19th century. the old narthex (entrance portico).
On the tower is painted a clock face decorated with sunbeams and with a single hand (the mechanism no longer works today). At the top in the angles, we see two angels holding, one a flying dove, symbol of the birth of the day, the other a lit torch, symbol of the night. The figures on each side are Saint Rémy on the right and his mother Saint Célinie on the left.
Further down, on the buttress of the tower, an 18th century sundial. indicates, when the weather is nice, the hour of the sun (or true time). The Latin inscription that one reads below "SICUT UMBRA DIES NOSTRI SUPER TERRAM" means "On earth, our days pass like the shadows".
The interior of the church is lit by large Gothic three-lobed windows. You can admire several paintings by the Trojan painter Jacques de Létin (1597-1661) and, above the high altar, the famous bronze Christ by François Girardon, Trojan sculptor (1628-1715) to whom we also owe the fountains of the Palace of Versailles.
Threatened with destruction, the church was saved from demolition by the protests of the inhabitants and classified as a historical monument in 1908.
The St Rémy church is part of the Association des clochers tors d'Europe which lists the hundred or so churches presenting this very unique feature!
