L'église Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption

The origins of this very ancient church are unknown. According to some medievalists the parish of Sancta-Maria-de-Wasto was given to the Fécamp abbey estate in the year 990 by Richard the First, Duke of Normandy, the son of Guillaume Longue Epée (William LongSword). Others talk of a later donation by Richard the Second in 1025.

Just before the year 1000, an abundance of chronicles telling of dramatic events or extraordinary phenomena incited the foretelling of an imminent end of the world, as maintained by the famous prediction of the Apocalypse. Was this then a form of redemption or was it an act of one of the most persistent and prevalent practices of the Middle Ages? Some sources refer to the entrance to a world of exchanges where gifts were  the most visible, gifts to God through his representatives on earth, the priests and monks. As is pointed out by Jacques le Maho, a researcher at the CNRS (National Scientific Research Centre), the monks probably carried out a partial rebuilding of the church after the donation. Five rare Corinthian style  capitals of a very particular structure  remain from these reconstruction works. They decorate the back of the apse and illustrate the beginnings of Roman art in Upper Normandy.

During the 100 years war (1337 to 1453) the church was damaged several times and in 1627 a violent fire caused by lightning destroyed the bell tower. A request for its reconstruction by the inhabitants went unanswered for more than two centuries! In the 19th century, as the population increased, important renovation and enlargement work became necessary. Land was cleared around the church for processions and the apse, previously hidden here by the height of the land, was revealed.

At the request of the municipality, the Rouen architect Henri Couillard drew up plans for two new chapels and a sacristy. This work was undertaken by a local entrepreneur and finished in 1857.

The cemetery surrounding the church gradually fell into disuse and the land was levelled off. The new bell-tower and portal, designed by Désiré Martin and Delphir Marical, were finally rebuilt in 1887 and gave the church its present day aspect.

The parish church, of which the date of consecration is unknown, is dedicated to the Virgin Mary while the patron saint of the village is Saint Anne.