Regnault, Arthur

REGNAULT, Arthur (1839-1932), active in Rennes, France, was the author of a unique ecclesiastical design for St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, CHURCH POINT, N.S., built 1903-05 (L'Eglise Ste. Marie, 1980, 26-7, illus.; E. Pacey, More Stately Mansions, 1983, 162-7, illus. & descrip.). Overlooking St. Mary's Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, this landmark is reputed to be the largest wooden building in North America. The work was commissioned by Father P.M. Dagnaud, a native of Brittany, France who studied for the priesthood at a Eudist Seminary. He likely knew of the work of Regnault, who was the brother of the Assistant General of the Eudist Fathers of France. Begun in June 1903 the church draws upon continental French architectural tradition, an image reinforced by Romanesque windows and interior supporting arches; the main tower rises nearly 200 feet and is crowned with distinctive turrets surrounding the spire that bear a resemblance to those found in the roof configuration of many chateaux in the Loire Valley. An appraisal of the Canadian work completed by Regnault was published in 2015 (Prof. Luc Noppen, " French Architects in Early Twentieth-Century French-Canadian Church Architecture" in the Journal of the Society for the Study of Architecture in Canada, xl, No. 1, Spring 2015, 59-73, descrip. & illus.)