Hospitaller Commandery of La Sauvetat
La Sauvetat-Rossilhe / La Salvetat / Salvitate
(La Sauvetat, Puy-de-Dôme)
The church
The Hospitaller commandery of La Sauvetat was located south of Clermont. Its origins are not entirely clear: the site is mentioned as early as 1261, when the Knights of the Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem are thought to have established a commandery there. In 1287 it was visited by Simon de Beaulieu, Archbishop of Bourges (1281–1294).
Tower of La Sauvetat
In 1309, the Order of the Hospital received from the Templars the commandery of Olloix (Puy-de-Dôme). With this transfer, La Sauvetat was placed under its authority, owing to Olloix’s stronger defensive position. It should be noted that the commandery of La Sauvetat lay on a plain, in land better suited for cultivation. Little is known about its later history, although a severe outbreak of plague is recorded in 1586. The Hospitaller presence continued until the Revolution; in 1795 all its property was sold to various buyers.
The fortified core of La Sauvetat still survives, although time and changes of use have altered the overall complex. The site was probably fortified during the Hundred Years’ War. Within the enclosure, besides the walls surrounding the central nucleus, the church —surrounded by adjoining buildings— and a circular tower are particularly noteworthy.
Tower of La Sauvetat
- GUÉLON, P.F. (1882). Histoire de la Sauvetat-Rossille: chef-lieu d'une commanderie de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem. Clarmont d’Alvèrnia: Thibaud
- NIEPCE, Léopold (1883). Le Grand-prieuré d'Auvergne. Lyon: H. Georg
- PARENT, Daniel (2022). La Sauvetat. Place de l’église. ADLFI. Archéologie de la France
La Sauvetat lies to the south of Clermont-Ferrand