What happened to the beautiful and spectacular Église Saint-Martin in Nampcelles-la-Cour? When we visited, we were frankly a little stunned by the state of the church, which looked completely dilapidated.

The spire was makeshift covered with tarpaulins, cobwebs had formed on the entrance door, so we assumed that no one had entered the church for some time.

On the tourism page of the Thiérache, the church is still described as being completely intact; another page on the internet shows photos of the Tour de France, which passed through the village in 2019, on which a church in the best condition can be seen. For the moment, however, this remains a mystery to us.

The entire complex must date from the 16th century. The choir and the nave are made of brick, the keep, contrary to the custom in the Thiérache, is made of white stone, but the inside is also covered with brick. The choir, which is higher than the nave, is flanked by two towers at two opposite corners.

Access to the escape rooms is via a very narrow spiral staircase in the keep. On the first floor there is a fireplace and loopholes, and there are no windows. It is therefore actually a keep and not a bell tower.

Inside, the polychrome limestone statue of Saint Anne (16th century) is one of the beautiful objects kept at Saint-Martin, along with an 18th century altarpiece.