Saint Hugh and Saint Acarius

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https://messes.info/horaires/paroisse:ar/62/saint-bertin-des-plaines-de-l-oye

Situated in the centre of the village, the church of Sts Hugh and Achaire is part of a vaste estate : the prevostship of Haspres, whose origines go back to the 7th century. Attached to the Abbey of Jumièges in 841 and then to that of Arras in 1024, the prevostship is under the authority of a monk . It became an important pilgrimage centre following the arrival of relics of Hugh and Acarius, healers of mental sickness, who are symbolised by a spider.

There is little information about the first church which has reached our times, except a drawing by Josua de Grave dated 1711 on which can be seen the building with a square tower and steeple, and a chevet ending in an abside.

Destroyed during the Revolution, the church of early Norman structure was massively transformed during the 19th and 20th centuries. Among all the rebuilding, can be seen a passage behind the altar which probably gave access to the crypt of the original church.

The present church dates from 1809 and has an intemporal style due to its architecture, its furnishings and unexpected elements which illustrate its eventful history.