Rennes-le-Château, between mystifications and realities

by Gil Galasso https://doi.org/10.4000/12dtr

I reproduce the last part of the article for interest purposes. You can read the original HERE.

Some serious interpretations

146Some

Some interesting clues are put forward on the origin of the treasure, if it exists, without commenting on clues prior to the seventeenth century which, to date, seem too risky to us due to lack of sources. Only one proof of this treasure allegedly discovered by Saunière was presented. It is a vermeil chalice (gold-covered silver) offered by Saunière to his friend Abbé Grassaud (1859-1946) of Saint-Paul de Fenouillet and which was publicly exposed. The Chanoine family owned it in the 1970s. [The] 147Theorigin of this chalice is debated between Abbé Mazières and René Descadeillas. For the first, the cup dates from the mid-18th century and would have been offered to Abbé Saunière by the Knights of Malta. For the second, on the other hand, the chalice dates from the 17th century and would have been part of the supposed treasure found. Other testimonies evoke "old" jewellery worn by Marie Dénarnaud and members of her family, supposedly seen by the population.

Serrallonga's booty?

• 113 COULON, 2012, p. 15-29.
• 114 MATHOREZ, 1932. p. 27-51.
• 115 The Pyrénées-Orientales are attached to France after the Treaty of the Pyrenees (1659).

148AtAt the beginning of the 17th century, a bandit named Joan Sala I Ferrer, also known as Serrallonga₁₁₃, ruled in Catalonia. He frequently took refuge in the city of Nyer, where Lord Thomas de Banyuls was at the head of a small army of bandits called the "Nyerros"₁₁₄ or "bandoleros", bandits of the great roads who robbed traveler's. After committing their misdeeds, the criminals hide on the other side of the border, on the land of Lord Vivier (in the current department of the Pyrénées-Orientales which was not in Catalonia but in France at the time₁₁₅). Serralonga died at the age of 40, in 1634. However, it turns out that Baron Blaise d'Hautpoul married in 1640 a daughter of Lord Vivier and that Abbé Bigou comes from a village very close to the Vivier's. We can therefore imagine that the loot was hidden in a place known to the baron and the priest and that his initiated descendant leaves traces when leaving his church definitively to flee the revolutionary terror.

The treasure of the bishops of Alet?

• 116 BRUNEL Philippe, Interview with Mrs. Barthe, August 2017https://youtu.be/BV5lsaouMVs? If =Tf-91DBrXi(...)
• 117 GARNIER, 2024

149ItIt is possible that the Rennes-le-Château countryside or its surroundings have served as a cache for various bishops of Alet. Michel Vallet's research based on documents from the "Corbu-Captier" [collection] and interviews suggest that Abbé Saunière's secret was unraveled in the years 1937-1939 by his goddaughter Josette Barthe. At the end of her life, she showed several researchers photos of old jewelry₁₁₆ as well as expertise documents of the same pieces by a well-known Toulouse hardware store named Antonin Schwab₁₁₇. She explains that they came from the cache found by her great-uncle and that the [same] hardware store regularly came to buy these objects from Saunière.

• 118 CORBU, CAPTIER, 2018, p. 279.
• 119 CORBU, CAPTIER, 2018, p. 279: the whole was paid 23 million francs in 1940.

150DuringDuring her holidays at the estate during her adolescence, Josette Barthe found in the priest's library documents related to the revolutionary era testifying to the protection of the treasury of the bishopric of Alet. According to Michel Vallet, she also discovered forty-six gold coins from the Roman era₁₁₈of the quadrige type that were then sold through a priest at the Museum of Archaeology of Saint-Germain-en-Laye₁₁₉.

• 120 DOINEL, 1907, p. 219-235.
• 121 ARMAND, 1891, p. 264.
• 122 Collective, Academy of Arts and Sciences (Carcassonne), Memoirs of the Society of Arts and Saws (...)

151AA report by a commissioner of the young republic reveals that the inventory of Mgr. Charles de la Cropte de Chantérac (1724-1793) is particularly modest₁₂₀because he does not hold any valuable objects or furniture. Indeed, at the time of the inventory, he had already left the country to flee the revolution with Abbé Bigou and Abbé Cauneille₁₂₁. It is therefore legitimate to ask questions about the disappearance of the church property, calyxes and furniture of the bishopric that were not mentioned in the revolutionary inventory but that did exist₁₂₂. The researcher Michel Azins claims to have found  traces of the people mandated to hide the ecclesiastical treasure, that is to say the nephews of the bishop, Jean Hyppolite Henri Michel de la Cropte and Louis Charles Hyppolite Édouard de la Cropte de Chantérac. These were immediately caught up in the revolutionary whirlwind, the first joining Condé's army and the second into exile in Malta.

• 123 CHARPENTIER, 1901, p. 138-180.

152ToTo support this hypothesis, some mention the surprising presence, in the Saunière library, of works of great value dating from the 18th century, presenting on the counterplate the abbot's ex-libris. However, it is attested that the bishop's library contained several thousand books₁₂₃ before the Revolution. Researcher Michel Vallet states that the books showed signs of moisture indicating poor storage conditions for years.

• 124 MENSIOR, 2017, p. 238.

153AccordingAccording to a study conducted by researcher Patrick Mensior₁₂₄, Saunière held a Louis XIII armchair that belonged to the Bishop of Alet. Mensior compares this armchair to the detailed description of a very similar piece of furniture, owned by the bishop, described in a notarial deed of October 25, 1670.

A treasure from a cache located in the Rennes-le-Château countryside?

• 125 LORET Jean, La muze historique, or Collection of letters in verse containing the news of the time: é(...)
• 126 DAFFOS, 2007.
• 127 Ibid. LORET Jean (excerpt): "...But I found out, by other notes, that it was in the County of Alets, E (...)

154TheThe researcher Robert Thiers developed a theory from a source from the gazetier Jean Loret₁₂₅ evoking the conflict of a bishop of Alet named Nicolas Pavillon (1597-1677) with Baron Blaise d'Hautpoul₁₂₆, lord of Rennes, about the sharing of a treasure find₁₂₇. The latter refuses to let the bishop's men "cross his land without authorisation". The researchers read in filigree the refusal that the bishop's men access an area, owned by the baron, which corresponds to a treasure cache.

• 128 SAINT-MARC (de), CHASSAGNE (de la), 2010.

155ThisThis case is closely linked to François Fouquet (1611-1673), French prelate, disciple of Saint Vincent de Paul. In 1656, he was appointed coadjudicator of Claude de Rebé, Archbishop of Narbonne, with a promise of succession. At the time of the latter's death in 1659, he took over the presidency of the States of Languedoc. His brother, Nicolas Fouquet, superintendent of Louis XIV, met Nicolas Pavillon in Toulouse in 1659 in the presence of François₁₂₈. This interview concerned the division of the diocese of Alet, Pavilion wishing to separate Alet and his diocese from that of Limoux.156Researcher Franck Daffos supports the theory that François Fouquet, Archbishop of Narbonne until 1673, supervised the excavation of the treasure. This circumstance would partly explain the lawsuit brought by King Louis XIV against Nicolas Fouquet about his immense fortune, the origin of which is unknown (the investigation conducted in connection with the trial did not lead to the conclusion of irregularities or embezzlement). It should be noted that Franck Daffos does not provide details on the origin of the supposed treasure.

Conclusion

157WhatWhat can we conclude from this research?158Saunière

Saunière was an abbot with a complex personality. It seems that funds were embezzled through mass trafficking. It is also considered that a treasure has been discovered. These two monetary sources were partially invested to renovate and beautify a church, buy communal land, build gardens and a villa to welcome retired priests (Saunière never lived in the Béthanie villa, preferring to live in a small room in the presbytery while the villa was reserved for its many guests) and enjoy a luxurious and spendthrift lifestyle that does not correspond to the usual posture of an abbot.159Was 

Abbé Saunière then was a crook in a cassock? 

Was he opportunistic, ensuring a comfort of life to which no priest of the time was entitled? Although his Catholic faith does not seem refuted, did he refuse to live in the vow of poverty that the ecclesiastical dogma imposed? In this case, why didn't he reasonably save to ensure a comfortable end of life instead of the impoverishment he suffered? 

These raise several 160Severalhypothesis'.161In In the first place, this insoluble enigma could be a vast mystification organised in the sixties and no treasure would ever have existed around Rennes-le-Château. In this case, what meaning can be given to suggestions prior to the Saunière era, which have been attested as authentic? Can the mass traffic alone justify the abbot's many expenses? This is what the deniers say.

• 129 ROUQUETTE, 1996.
• 130 Some researchers even mention the possibility that Saunière was not fully informed of the c (...)

162SecondlySecondly, an extraordinary treasure would have been discovered by Saunière in a fortuitous way. Can this explain the extravagance he showed, this luxurious lifestyle so surprising for a priest? How to explain the poverty at the end of his life? Why would the source suddenly dry up during the First World War? Did the conflict prevent Saunière from withdrawing its funds abroad from 1914? Did a land collapse suddenly prevent him from accessing the cache containing his treasure₁₂₉ the area is known to have high seismic activity)?

• 131 CORBU, CAPTIER 2018, p. 289.

163AA third hypothesis assumes that a group of priests linked to the Saint-Sulpice church in Paris, or a secret congregation, held a church secret which they left protean traces of so that it would one day be discovered by peers. This theory suggests that Saunière, arrived late₁₃₀ in this circle of "initiated" clergymen, and would have received money in different forms including that of a mass trafficking orchestrated by the group itself. He would have been commissioned to renovate and decorate his church and build an estate according to precise instructions in order to continue the coding transmitted post mortem. However, a hazard could have arisen that would have prevented the fulfillment of his task - perhaps the murder of Abbé Gélis or a dispute with his bishopric or with Abbé Boudet? - leaving Saunière suddenly without resources. In this conjecture, the trafficking of masses is considered a means of guaranteeing comfort of life but it does not cover construction costs and ends at the time of the trial.

164AnAn excerpt from the priest's notebook supports this hypothesis. On March 30, 1903, it was mentioned that he received a visit from Father Cerceau and Father Pierre Sire, parish priest of Luc-sur-Aude. He describes the visit as an "inspection" of the work, as if he had to report to them₁₃₁. We can reasonably think that, from his first discoveries, Saunière informs the congregation that commissioned him so that he would be helped in understanding the documents discovered.165The

The mystery of Rennes-le-Château is undoubtedly an important element of the historical and tourist heritage of our Occitanie region. We wish to end this article by expressing the wish that it be taken up from a different angle.166This

This could be the point of view of medieval history, in order to estimate the serious traces of a treasure prior to the 17th century, or the illumination of art history, to explore the traces evoked by researchers on canvases and painters [that] can be linked to this enigma.168We

We will gladly make available to these explorers the sources collected by us.

NOTES;

₁₁₃ COULON, 2012, p. 15-29.

₁₁₄ MATHOREZ, 1932. p. 27-51.

₁₁₅ Les Pyrénées-Orientales se trouvent rattachés à la France après le traité de Pyrénées (1659).

₁₁₆ BRUNEL Philippe, Interview de Madame Barthe, août 2017 https://youtu.be/BV5lsaouMVs ?si =Tf-91DBrXi (...)

₁₁₇ GARNIER, 2024.

₁₁₈ CORBU, CAPTIER, 2018, p. 279.

₁₁₉ CORBU, CAPTIER, 2018, p. 279 : l’ensemble fut payé 23 millions de francs en 1940.

₁₂₀ DOINEL, 1907, p. 219-235.

₁₂₁ ARMAND, 1891, p. 264.

₁₂₂ Collectif, Académie des arts et sciences (Carcassonne), Mémoires de la Société des arts et des scie (...)

₁₂₃ CHARPENTIER, 1901, p. 138-180.

₁₂₄ MENSIOR, 2017, p. 238.

₁₂₅ LORET Jean, La muze historique, ou Recueil des lettres en vers contenant les nouvelles du temps : é (...)

₁₂₆ DAFFOS, 2007.

₁₂₇ Ibid. LORET Jean (extrait) : « …Mais j’ai scu, par d’autres billets, Que ce fut au Comté d’Alets, E (...)

₁₂₈ SAINT-MARC (de), CHASSAGNE (de la), 2010.

₁₂₉ ROUQUETTE, 1996.

₁₃₀ Certains chercheurs évoquent même la possibilité que Saunière n’était pas informé complètement du c (...)

₁₃₁ CORBU, CAPTIER 2018, p. 289.

Bibliography

ADLER Alexandre, Sociétés secrètes, Pluriel, Fayard, 2008.

ANDRIEU Martial, Guiraud Cals, l’architecte oublié de la cité de Carcassonne, musique et patrimoine de Carcassonne. URL : http://musiqueetpatrimoinedecarcassonne.blogspirit.com/archive/2019/10/29/guiraud-cals-l-architecte-oublie-de-la-cite-de-carcassonne-3143084.html, consulté le 10 février 2024.

ARMAND Jean, Les évêques et les archevêques de France depuis 1682 jusqu’à 1801, Paris et Mamers (éd.), 1891, p. 264.

AZENS Michel, Rennes-le-Château, le domaine de l’abbé Saunière. Histoire de sa construction, informations sur son architecte, Pégase (éd.), 2016.

BAIGENT Michael, LEIGH Richard, LINCOLN Henry, The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail [L’énigme sacrée], Jonathan Cape (éd), Londres, 1982.

BANON David, « Archéologie et Bible. En quête de la vérité ou du sens ? », Pardès, 2011/2 (N° 50), p. 45-55. DOI : 10.3917/parde.050.0045. URL : https://www.cairn.info/revue-pardes-2011-2-page-45.htm.

DOI : 10.3917/parde.050.0045

BEDU Jean-Jacques, Rennes-le-Château : Autopsie d’un mythe, Loubatières, Villemur-sur-Tarn, 1990.

BESSE Guillaume, Histoire des ducs, marquis et comtes de Narbonne, autrement appellez princes des Goths, ducs de Septimanie et marquis de Gothie, A. de Sommaville (éd.), Paris,1660.

BOUDET Henri, La vraie langue celtique et le Cromleck de Rennes-les-Bains, Pomiès (éd.), Carcassonne 1886. URL : http://www.rennes-le-chateau-archive.com/la_vraie_langue_celtique.php, consulté le 7 janvier 2024.

BROWN Dan, The Da Vinci Code, Doubleday (éd.), New York, 2003.

BUCHHOLTZER Laurent (Octonovo), Rennes-le-Château une Affaire Paradoxale, ODS (éd.), 2008.

CABROL Fernand, LECLERCQ Henri, Dictionnaire d’archéologie chrétienne et de liturgie, Letouzey et Ané (éd.), Paris, 1910. URL : https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark :/12148/bpt6k3050082t consulté le 10 février 2024.

CÉSARÉE Procope de, (trad. du grec ancien par Denis Roques et Janick Auberger), Histoire des Goths, Les Belles Lettres (éd.), coll. « La Roue à livres », Paris, 2015.

CHARPENTIER Léon, Un inventaire épiscopal à Alet en 1763. Mémoires de la Société des Arts et des Sciences de Carcassonne, tome X, 1^re partie, 1901, p. 138-180.

CHAUMEIL Jean-Luc, Rennes-le-Château - Gisors, Le testament du prieuré de Sion, Pégase, 1993.

CHERUEL A., Mémoires sur la vie publique et privée de Fouquet, surintendant des finances, Paris, 1862.

CORBU Claire, CAPTIER Antoine, Marie Dénarnaud-Bérenger Saunière, liés par un secret. Rennes-le-Château, Pégase (éd.), Rivesaltes, 2018, p 217 : testament de Bérenger Saunière.

COULON Damien, Les migrations de marchands catalans en Méditerranée orientale aux xiv^e et xv^e siècles. Source(s) – Arts, Civilisation et Histoire de l’Europe, 1 | 2012, 15-29.
DOI : 10.57086/sources.460

DAFFOS Franck, L’affaire des carnets, réponse à Octovono, Arqa (éd), Paris, 2009

DAFFOS Franck, Rennes-le-Château : le puzzle reconstitué, Arqa (éd.), Paris, 2007.

DAFFOS Franck, Rennes-le-Château, le secret dérobé, l’œil du Sphinx, Paris, 2005.

DESCADEILLAS René, La seigneurie de Rennes (Aude) au XVIII^e siècle. Annales du Midi : revue archéologique, historique et philologique de la France méridionale, tome 72, n° 51, 1960, p. 337-348.

DESCADEILLAS René, MOLS Roger. Rennes et ses derniers seigneurs, 1730-1820. Contribution à l’étude économique et sociale de la baronnie de Rennes (Aude) au XVIII^e siècle. Revue belge de philologie et d’histoire, tome 46, fasc. 1, 1968. Antiquité - Oudheid. p. 139-141.

DESCADEILLAS René, Mythologie du trésor de Rennes : histoire véritable de l’abbé Saunière, curé de Rennes-le-Château, Savary (éd.), Carcassonne, 1974.

DOINEL Jules, Courte notice documentaire sur le dernier évêque d’Alet. Mémoires de la Société des Arts et des Sciences de Carcassonne, tome 3, 2^ème série 1907, p. 219-235.

FAVATIER Léonce, Rapport sur l’histoire du cercle catholique de Narbonne, 25 décembre 1900, imprimerie Caillard, Narbonne, 1901.

FEDIÉ Louis, Rhedae, La Cité Des Chariots. L’écrit Qui Motiva Les Recherches De L’abbé Saunière À Rennes-Le-Château, Lajoux frères (éd.), Carcassonne, 1880.

GARNIER T.E., Entretien avec François Lange, Arqua éditions, Marseille, 2024.

GIORDANENGO Gérard. LEVILLAIN Philippe. Albert de Mun ; catholicisme français et catholicisme romain du Syllabus au Ralliement. Rome : école française de Rome, 1983. In-8°, 1 062 pages. (Bibliothèque des Écoles françaises d’Athènes et de Rome, 247.). Bibliothèque de l’école des chartes. 1986, tome 144, livraison 1. p. 168-170.

HÉRICART DE THURY Didier, DAFFOS Franck, L’or de Rennes, Arqa (éd.), Paris, 2011.

HUGUET Eugène, Les archives de Rennes-le-Château 2 toute la correspondance du Chanoine Huguet, avocat défenseur de l’abbé Saunière, 100 lettres mises en ordre par Pierre Jarnac, Pégase (éd.), Villeneuve-de-la-Raho, 2003.

JUDE Paul, Je connais un endroit où il n’y a rien au-dessus, Lulu (eé.), Raleigh, Nord Caroline, USA, 2017

LAQUIÈRE M., Solutions régulières du problème d’Euler sur la marche du cavalier. Bulletin mathématique de France, tome 8 (1880), Lucas (éd.), Paris, p. 82-102.
DOI : 10.24033/bsmf.200

LE GOFF Jacques, Histoire et mémoire, histoire folio (éd.), Paris, 1988.

LORET Jean, La muze historique, ou Recueil des lettres en vers contenant les nouvelles du temps : écrites à Son Altesse Mademoizelle de Longueville, depuis duchesse de Nemours (1650-1665), tome 3, P. Jannet (éd.), Paris.

MAS-LATRIE Louis de, Fragments d’histoire de Chypre. Établissement de la domination latine en Chypre. Bibliothèque de l’école des chartes. 1856, tome 17, p. 10-53. DOI : https://doi.org/10.3406/bec.1856.445385
DOI : 10.3406/bec.1856.445385

MATHIEU Pierre, Rennes-le-château, Le trésor qui les rend fou, La Dépêche du Midi, 31 juillet 2011. URL : https://tinyurl.com/5n8tw3m2, consulté le 17 février 2024.

MATHOREZ Jules, Notes sur l’infiltration des Espagnols en France aux XVII^e et XVIII^e siècles. Bulletin Hispanique, tome 34, n° 1, 1932, p. 27-51.
DOI : 10.3406/hispa.1932.2436

MENSIOR Patrick, Le journal de l’abbé Saunière, 1901 à 1905, ODS (éd.), 2017, p. 238.

NADINE-JOSETTE Chaline, CHARON Jeanine. La construction des églises paroissiales aux XIX^ème et XX^ème siècles. Revue d’histoire de l’Église de France, tome 73, n° 190, 1987. La construction des lieux de culte du Moyen Âge à nos jours. p. 35-51.PLANDE R. 

Jean Girou, L’Itinéraire en terre d’Aude. Revue géographique des Pyrénées et du Sud-Ouest, tome 9, fascicule 3, 1938, p. 303-304.

ROSSINI David, La pseudo-histoire décodée : l’exemple de Rennes-le-château, Éditions Book-e-Book, Lucq-de-Béarn, 2023.

ROUGÉ Michel, Le Gnomon de l’Église de Saint-Sulpice, Église de Saint-Sulpice (éd.), Paris, 2009.

ROUQUETTE Laurent, Deux tremblements de terre rappellent l’activité sismique en France, Le Monde, 20 février 1996. URL : https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/1996/02/20/deux-tremblements-de-terre-rappellent-l-activite-sismique-en-france_3707643_1819218.html, consulté le 01 mars 2024.

ROUSSE-LACORDAIRE Jérôme, Bulletin d’histoire des ésotérismes. Revue des sciences philosophiques et théologiques, 2015/3 (tome 99), p. 515-530. DOI : 10.3917/rspt.993.0515
DOI : 10.3917/rspt.993.0515

SAINT-MARC (de) Charles Hugues Lefébvre, CHASSAGNE (de la) Antoine, Vie de Monsieur Pavillon, Évêque D’Alet, Nabu Press (éd.), Naturschutzbund, Allemagne, 2010.

SAUSSEZ Paul, La Crypte Oubliée, PJS (éd,), Bruxelles, 2022.DE SÈDE Gérard (de), L’Or de Rennes, ou La Vie Insolite De Bérenger Saunière curé de Rennes-le-Château, René Julliard (éd), Paris, 1967.

SICARD Germain, Note sur les croix rupestres des Corbières. Bulletin de la Société d’études scientifiques de l’Aude, t. XXXII, 1928, p. 370-373.

THUILLIER GUY. VII – L’historien non professionnel. L’histoire en 2050 [en ligne]. Vincennes : Institut de la gestion publique et du développement économique, 2000. URL : http://books.openedition.org/igpde/7036 consulté le 1^er mars 2024.

VALLET MICHEL, Les Cahiers de Rennes-le-Château n° 12 – Bibliographie de Rennes-le-Château par Pierre Jarnac, Bélisane (éd.), 2002, p. 8.

VERDON Laure, Les templiers ont caché un trésor, dans : Le Moyen Âge. 10 siècles d’idées reçues. Sous la direction de VERDON Laure. Paris, Le Cavalier Bleu, « Idées reçues », 2019, p. 123-134.

VIGENÈRE Blaise, Traicté des chiffres, ou Secretes manieres d’escrire, Abel l’Angelier (éd.), Paris 1586. URL : https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark :/12148/bpt6k1040608n

VIGOUROUX Fulcran, le dictionnaire de la Bible, tome premier, Letouzey et Ané (éd.), Paris, 1891.WORDSWORTH John, J. WHITE Henry, Vulgate latine, Novum Testamentum Domini Nostri Iesu Christi latine secundum sancti Hieronymi, Oxford, Clarendon Press (éd), p. 1889-1954.

Reproduced under above license ....