12 - A little tour of the Margeride

Venteuges, formerly Venteïols, is a small town steeped in history. Dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, its church is built of granite stone from the Margeride, typical of the region, and has the former house of the béates (devout women) next to it on the north-west side. The existence of a Romanesque building is attested, but many alterations were made, notably in the 15th century, when the abbess of Les Chazes had the choir rebuilt. The current bell tower, 32 metres tall, was built in 1857. Twenty years later, two local sculptors took on the high altar. On the façade, you can see two figures of Evangelists: the angel of Saint Matthew, on the left, and the eagle of Saint John, on the right. The lion of Saint Mark and the bull of Saint Luke are placed on either side of the cross to the east. The modesty of the work bears witness to the reserve and rusticity typical of the surroundings of Venteuges and, more broadly, of Saugues. Standing in front of this building, we can imagine the blanket of snow and the icy wind lashing the faces of parishioners who had come to pray, like that day in January 1867 when a young child was carried off by the Beast of Gévaudan, or to rebel in 1793 when the Regime seized the property of the Church.