Airvault - Saint-Pierre

Saint-Pierre was the church of one of the largest Augustinian abbeys in the Poitou, that was founded in 991 by Audéarde, the wife of viscount Herbert I of Thouars. The monastery was on one of the "chemins" of the Via Turonensis, so when the number of pilgrims increased, the Canons Regular of St. Augustine had this large church erected in two construction phases from the 12th century on. The western facade and the narthex are the youngest parts of the structure.

When the era of the pilgrimage ended, the abbey declined and impoverished during the Hundred Years' War. Most conventual buildings were destroyed in the Wars of Religion. The abbey church now serves the parish.

The very damaged horseman, probably vandalized during the French Revolution. Horsemen can often be found in the Poitou-Charente (eg. Melle, Benet, Surgères, Parthenay). It is widely believed that these equestrian sculptures depict Constantine the Great trampling down heathenism. In Southern France and Spain, St. James/St. Jaques is often seen in that pose, supporting the reconquista as "matamoro".