Draft:Saint-Benoît Church, Réunion

Saint-Benoît Church (L'église Saint-Benoît) is a Catholic church on the island Réunion, a French department and region in the Indian Ocean. Located in the commune of Saint-Benoît, the church is listed in the supplementary list of historical monuments on 16 June 1997, and in the new list on 26 January 2012. The paintings of the choir, the fountain and the belfry are protected under the designation.

History
The creation of a parish in Saint-Benoit was planned as early as 1716. The first church in Saint-Benoît was completed in 1735 but became too small in 1755. It also had the disadvantage that if one did not keep the side doors well closed, prevailing wind may blow away the celebrant priests and the altars leaning against them in a single breath. Having become too small and invaded by bats, it was replaced in 1840 by the current building, with the stained glass windows installed in 1963.

The first stone of the current church was laid on 27 September 1840 by Rear Admiral Anne Chrétien Louis de Hell​ and blessed by Monsignor Poncelet, the Apostolic Prefect. The building was to cost the municipality 180,000 francs. It was repaired many times, notably after the cyclone of 1850 which swept away the bell tower and the roof. The current bells were dated from 1860 and were blessed by Monseigneur Maupoint.