Secrets of the church of Perillos Part 2: Beyond all suspicion

 

Royal rites for the dead

After having looked at the defensive precautions that have been built into the design of the church of Perillos, we need to go one step further. It is simply inconceivable that anyone, let alone the lords of Perillos, with all their culture, themselves advisors to the kings of Aragon, would have made the church into a mortal trap, not only for themselves, but their family and closest friends and advisors.
While the assailants are still trying to break through the entrance door, let us look further into the daily life of the lords of this region. For them, like anyone else, life is delineated by someone’s death, whether you are rich or poor, big or small. Though death happens to us all, the precise circumstances of that event differ tremendously. For the poor, it is very basic: a short prayer, a small hole in the cemetery, where the body is deposed, with the hope that above ground, a small memorial will commemorate this life, if only by listing a name, a date or year of death, hopefully a year or date of birth, if anyone ever knew or could remember.
For the rich and the lords of a region, it was totally different. Normally, they were buried in the church itself, either a tomb in the floor of the building; sometimes, a vault or crypt existed underneath the church (sometimes set apart from it) in which generations of the same family were continuously added to; history was contained in one room. Still, it were only the male descendents who were added to this crypt, at least in medieval times. Only in rare exceptions were women or very small infants admitted to be buried there. Those that were by custom excluded, received their tombs in a different location, often equally well and richly equipped, often near the entrance of the church or chapel, or in the middle of the cemetery. A good example of this can be found in Rennes-le-Château, where the Hautpoul men were buried in the crypt, and the women in the cemetery.

Honour in death

This specific “privilege” for the male heirs and this separation of the sexes has its origin in old customs, in which the “Earth” – it being female – was interpreted as belonging to the men; it were the men that ruled their domains. But this is but one aspect. The women often – normally – came from other families and whereas many families created relationships with one or two other families, frequently intermarrying amongst them, in principle it was possible that one family married into another family in each successive generation – and sometimes within the same generation, if one marriage proved to be childless. The male crypt thus made sure that only “true bearers” of the family name rested there. It also meant that it could serve as a type of bank vault, in which precious belongings of the family were stored.
Like everyone else, the lords of Perillos had a crypt or vault for their tombs, which was located underneath their chapel. Over successive generations, man after man was added to it, waiting, so the Church doctrine stated, for the Resurrection. The women of the family, as well as the children, waited too, but elsewhere.
In short, nothing indicates that the lords of Perillos were any different from any other ruling family, and thus had a crypt at their disposal, underneath the church… and as far as we can read the historical evidence, that crypt is still there.

Evidence… evidence?

Some will indeed object that this is merely a hypothesis. What evidence do we have it is there? There appears to be not a single piece of historical evidence to validate our assumption. That is, indeed, true. But rather than just object, critics should perhaps underline this is odd: why is there so little known about the final resting place of the lords of Perillos. After all, it is not a secret, is it? Or is it?

The church of St Francis of Assisi, Perpignan

Some will argue that the lords of Perillos perhaps decided to be buried elsewhere, in a place more conform to their rank and stature. Indeed, it is a valid argument – just like ours. But unlike our argument, we do know that this argument has some flaws. First, the only tomb of a member of the Perillos family outside Perillos exists in a church in Perpignan, that of St Francis of Assisi, which has been completely rebuilt since; nothing remains from before this reconstruction. We therefore only have archival evidence that states that there are a limited number of our family buried here, in the 15th century.
Secondly, we have some information about Ramon de Perellos y Roccaful, Grand Master of the Order of Malta. The tradition of this Order is quite stringent in desiring that all of its Grandmasters are buried in the floor of the Co-cathedral of Saint John, in Valetta, the capital of Malta. But like all rules, there are exceptions and this time, the exception is, wonders of wonders, Ramon de Perellos.
The casual visitor to the Maltese cathedral will at first not see any anomaly, for in a side chapel, there is indeed an imposing mausoleum in memory of Ramon de Perillos. But what few seem to note – or understand – is that a mausoleum is a commemorative monument, and not a tomb. We have twice initiated correspondence on this point with the two secretaries of the Order, in France and in Italy. At this moment in time, more than two years later, we are still awaiting an official position statement from the organisation. Let us however note that during our visit to Italy in March 2006, in company of Mr. Cassini, we were permitted to visit the local house of the Order in Genoa, where we were shown certain intriguing “oddities” of their church. During this meeting, the person in charge of this embassy told us quite clearly that we would never receive an official statement – or should expect to see any further correspondence on this issue. It seems that “the Order” does not want to make an official position as to whether or not their Grandmaster Ramon de Perellos is indeed not buried in their church, the reason why and where he is if not in Valetta. We can only ask – politely – why there is such reluctance. But we will return to this speculation at a later moment in time, when we discuss the figure of Jesus in this house of the Order of Malta.

The enemy, who demands his space in the kingdom of the dead of Perillos

Let us now pay close attention to something that is very interesting about the tombs of the Lords of Perillos. This information carries a lot of weight, as it comes from two independent and viable sources. When the Roussillon passes to the crown of France, we see how the small barony of Durban recuperates the territory of Perillos as a whole. The baron thus becomes viscount of Perillos and master of the title, the land and the attached revenues. (It will nevertheless take a few more generations before the lords will use the title.) It is at this time that the religious archives of Perillos are transferred to the presbytery of Durban. It is there that people like Bigou, Gélis, Boudet and Saunière are able to consult them in centuries to come.
We note that these archives will disappear in some “intriguing” circumstances, at the precise moment when the vicars of Durban are two persons, one called Gélis, the other Boudet… what bad luck or strange coincidence! But historically, this is not a major loss, for recently, we have been able to recover a part of these documents via a descendent from one of the families who welcomed… Saunière at their family home in Durban!
But let us return to the lords of Durban, now “aka” viscount of Perillos, a title they acquire without any honour (let us note that the Durbans, at the time of the Albigensian Crusade, keep well within the ranks of the crown of France and Simon de Montfort, making sure they get all the spoils, without doing the fight). There exists an extraordinary archive on the genealogy of the Durban family and their transactions, both of their titles and their properties – both often going hand in hand, of course. In this archive, it is written that the barons of Durban-Gleon, viscounts of Perillos ask, as soon as they get this “promotion”, to be buried in the sepulchre of Perillos… which is located in the church of Perillos. It is, after all, their right, even though it may not seem to be fitting. Let us try to imagine how an archenemy through several generations wishes to be buried next to the very same people his ancestors fought against… an adversary, furthermore, who has often made them look like a fool in some of the border incidents, which the Durban family seem to delight in. In short, it is an incredible request that is hard to imagine…. Except, of course, if there is a secret interest to be gained here, in a location that previously was solely reserved for the lords of Perillos.

The labours of Dr. Paul Courrent

The sole document detailing this bizarre demand can be found in a work written – and we mean written – by Paul Courrent, already well known in the history of the mystery of Saunière. He ends his life living in Embres, close to Durban, where he writes this important genealogy of the Durban family. The work will never be published and we believe that we have the sole copy in our possession. Several researchers can attest to this work, including Pierre Jarnac, who consulted it while on a visit to Notre-Dame de Marceille, in our presence.
The Durban family seem quite desperate in wanting to be buried in the crypt of Perillos and reiterate, vehemently, several times, this intention… but, explains Courrent, this is met without any success, for the entrance to the mortuary crypt of the Perillos cannot be discovered! Hence, the barons of Durban continue to have their burials in the old cemetery of Durban, in the chapel of the lords, outside the castle of Durban, an echo of the setup of Perillos. Later, the Durban-Gleon will be buried in the small Carolingian chapel, which still exists, in the old domain of Gléon, near Villesèque. This will be the last known document which makes official mention of a site under the old chapel of the lords of Perillos. Since, no-one speaks of the tomb of the lords.
We can only surmise that the new viscounts search for the entrance to the crypt, but if this is the case, it is clear that their efforts are in vain. A veil of forgetfulness seems to reside over this place… and shortly afterwards, all interest in this enigma seems to disappear… except, we think, with people like Bigou (specialist in the coding of funerary inscriptions), Gélis (who may have been “helped to the other side” for knowing too much), Boudet (who tries in an unconvential manner to leave us information on the region of Salses-Opoul) and especially the final player in this series: Bérenger Saunière.

Ramon de Perellos y Roccaful and his resting place

But back to the crypt, which in essence would have nothing out of the ordinary when compared to other such tombs of the period and region. It is only extra-ordinary in the desire of the lords of Durban to be buried there. And, of course, there is the desire of Ramon de Perellos y Roccaful, who forsakes to be buried amongst his peers in Valetta, and instead prefers to be buried in Perillos. The reason why is not given and we have noted the Order’s deliberate “no comment” policy on our questions. What was it that made Ramon break with tradition and make such a choice? Perhaps it was merely that he wanted to be buried with his ancestors… Or perhaps it was because he had somehow completed a “major work” that his ancestors had begun and hence he felt he wanted to join them in death, for he had completed their cause?
It’s one thing to say all of this; it is another to prove it, and when the Order in question is not willing to help, it is not made easier. Let us however note that a Grand Master of the Order of Malta simply does not disappear like any other mere mortal. Ramon de Perellos y Roccaful is the last person who will claim his right to be buried in the sepulchre of the lords of Perillos, in the crypt of the chapel. At the time of his death, we are already at a time when the Roussillon is attached to France and when the territory of these lords is already balancing in the hands of the hereditary enemies: the Durbans! And these are the ones who will never be able to locate the entrance to the tomb… though Ramon seems to be able to open it up under their very noses!

Everything must go

Ramon is the last to be buried here, but it seems that before, the crypt of the lords had not been accessed for a period of time – most of the lords having moved abroad already by this time. Irrespective of this, it is clear that he would not want to disturb the tombs of his ancestors and that his burial therefore needs to cause the least amount of problems. But it is equally clear that he, or whoever is in charge of his burial, makes sure that the access is totally obscured. With success, as no-one has been able to locate it since! And this includes the lords of Durban, who will later send two masons over to “restore” the church, as is in evidence in the inscription above the entrance porch.
But how can one hide – apparently with tremendous success – the access to a crypt under a chapel that is so small? Well, the answer is even more simple. It was accomplished by fundamentally altering the layout of the church, so that any detail that could betray the presence of an entrance into the underground becomes obscured – if not built over. For anyone who wants to know how this was accomplished, we invite this reader to look into the relevant articles on the changed orientation of the chapel. Still, it should be noted that for the careful student of this building, someone with a bit of knowledge – not much – but specifically someone who takes the time to look… that person will see.

A mass for Perillos

Ramon de Perellos y Roccaful did an excellent job in obliterating all the evidence… as remains in evidence today. Today, nobody knows the location of the crypt of his family. We note that his alterations incorporate a modification to the choir, which is modified from being placed in the south to the east. This work is carried out, on order of Ramon, by simple shepherds who no doubt are not up to date on the importance of the work they are tasked with. They try to work as carefully and professionally as possible, but it is in evidence that not even a plumb line or other basic instruments have been used in the construction. Ramon no doubt opted for this solution in order not to involve a master mason or someone from the outside whom he or his delegates could not control… or who might speak to “the enemy”, whoever that could be.
But we are missing a basic question here: why did a Grand Master of the Order of Malta go to such lengths in order to be buried in a location that was his ancestral home, but which in essence was nothing to brag about… seeing that, on the surface, some of his more immediate predecessors did everything to get away from the place… or was that perhaps intentional? Irrelevant of that question, it is clear that by making the decision to be buried here, he lets go of the pomp and circumstance that he would be accorded if he was buried back in Valetta. Was he merely trying to escape such grandeur? It seems unlikely, seeing he quite indulged in the grandeur of the Order… and added to it! But we should also note that by the time he makes this decision, Perillos can no longer be seen as “his home”… it’s been three centuries since the last Perillos officially held it and when it was in the hands of a “real” Perillos. Could there be a better reason?

“To be closer to you, My God… closer to you” (religious chant)

Let us state something very basic: Ramon is ready to abandon the honours and the daily prayers that would be his due, trading it all for a place that holds his name, but with nothing else but that. But what if Ramon believes or knows that what he has traded in, largely is equal to the grand design of a co-cathedral, the veritable centre of one of the biggest orders of the world… then… and now? In grandeur, it is clear that the small chapel of Perillos does not measure up at all to the cathedral: in the entire chapel are less decorations than on every square metre of the church in Valletta. Some might say every square foot! But as this is his choice, it seems that Perillos for him is a site that seems to bring him closer to God than the cathedral. That could be seen as an insult to the Order and at a very basic level might explain their reluctance to comment… but surely that reason is far too basic for a noble Order such as theirs!

The ultimate knowledge of Bigou, Gélis, Boudet and Saunière

Two centuries later, Gélis and Boudet, after their posting as vicars of Durban, become the respective priests of Coustaussa and Rennes-les-Bains. They had these archives of Perillos at their fingertips and must have equally understood the role another priest had played in the enigma: Bigou, a century earlier, whose flock in Rennes-le-Château is, from 1885 onwards, shepherded by Saunière. It seems more than likely that our trio – if not supported by other priests – decided to follow up on this plan, which seems to have been quite dangerous, perhaps the direct result being that Gélis is assassinated. After Boudet dies in 1915, it is Saunière who tries to hand over the acquired knowledge of Perillos to “someone else”, in the model. Though we do not subscribe to these notions as they are not based on any evidence, some of the key players have always been convinced – how it is not clear – that Boudet and even Saunière were murdered, rather than die natural deaths! But what is incontestable, is that at least part of the archives disappeared from the presbytery of Durban, at the time of Gélis and Boudet. Could it be that some of these papers were believed to reside with Gélis and that this was the reason for his torture? Was someone looking for these papers, someone not locally, someone who had either traced these documents down to Gélis, or perhaps thought they were there, and then subjected the priest to a hostile interrogation, with Gélis not surviving this ordeal?

A chapel seals its secrets… and he is there, dead.

The Perillos family knew that underneath their chapel there was a fault line. This may have been the reason why it was considered to be a sacred site, perhaps in pagan times. If it was a religious site in pagan times, the early Church may have decided to build the chapel there to block its access, stop its pagan use and show to the local people that Christianity had conquered their pagan deities. There was a new God on the block.
There is nothing out of the ordinary to suggest that over time, the natural cavity was then used by the local lords to create the crypt. Its whereabouts remain known, for every so often, a new lord is added to it. In the case of Perillos, though what remains is sketchy, we can imagine it being used from at least ca. 1100 to around 1400-1450 AD, at a time when Perillos is sold and it is not clear where the Perillos family leaders are buried – and it suggests they were buried in various locations. Though there are traces of the existence of Perillos from the 10th century, it is unknown whether it had its own lords. Then, in the early 18th century, Ramon de Perellos y Roccaful has the ambition to be buried with his ancestors, but equally decides that he will be the last to be added to the sepulchre. He thus changes the direction of the chapel and all traces of a crypt are removed.
But why? Ramon de Perellos y Roccaful was operating at a time when the Durban-Gleons were actively trying to be buried inside this crypt. Ramon may have known of their plans and may have tried to counteract them, showing them he could be buried there, and he could afterwards obliterate all clues. Was he merely showing them up? But surely that cannot be the sole reason? It can definitely not be the reason why he forsook to be buried in Valetta, amongst his peers!

The landscape of Perillos is almost solely limestone – so is most of the Mediterranean. Limestone comes with many subterranean networks of caves, tunnels, some of which stretch for tens, sometimes hundreds of miles. We know this is the case in Perillos, for example the so-called “gouffre”, a sheer drop of about 50 metres, but which, once inside, continues for apparently several miles underground, in which an adult can walk easily. What we are suggesting is that there is a likelihood that the fault line under the chapel was not merely a small “cave”, but could actually be part of a larger network, and could run on for several kilometres. Let us assume that this network also opens up to the surface, at some distance removed from the chapel. This could mean that someone entering the crypt, can walk underground over a certain distance, and surface elsewhere, some kilometres away. Two things to note: this could explain why the lords of Perillos desire to lock themselves into the chapel at a time of siege, knowing that through the crypt, they can surface discretely and away from all the danger. Even if they could not totally reseal the entrance of the crypt, thus leaving a clue to the invader who would break through the door, by the time he would go through the tunnel and surface on the other end, the lords of Perillos would have long gone. Second note: what if this exit is somewhere located on Saunière’s model? Perhaps it is even one of the two “tombs”? Perhaps this exit – which could equally be seen as a secondary entrance to the crypt – may have been a contributing factor as to why Courtade labelled this site as “royal and sacred”? In this scenario, the desire of the Durban-Gleon and the desire of Ramon de Perellos are not merely skirmishes between two old enemies – it are two old enemies trying to discover a secret, with the other one trying to maintain the secret, having to go to some lengths to succeed.

Nothing ever really gets lost…

As a result of these modifications, access and the precise whereabouts of the crypts have become lost. The location of the fault-line and its accesses are unknown. Still, when we use words such as “unknown” or “lost”, it does not imply that the system itself has totally collapsed. Perhaps the crypt is indeed there, in perfect condition, untouched for almost three centuries. The same for the other entrance to the crypt, somewhere in the beautiful landscape of Perillos. Perhaps there is even something in the church that is so simple to remove that access to the crypt is restored. We would merely expect that its mechanism of operation just needs a bit of oiling.
For the crypt to be completely sealed and “lost forever”, by default, someone would have placed Ramon de Perellos in it, and then have the entire structure collapse – for merely sealing the entrances means the crypt remains intact, and anything in it. Recently, with the full permission of the authorities in place at the time, we were the only people who carried out a detailed measurement of the church, a work which was carried out with the traditional means, hence not using any modern technology.
The outcome of this work was that we could observe that the “ground level” of the ground had hardly changed at all, except a very minor change when new paving was installed. The reason why this work was carried out will be explained in the third part. But it is safe to conclude that the floor of the church of St Michael in Perillos has not been modified, either at ground or below ground level. This means that any empty space underneath has survived the test of time and should be found to be in good if not perfect condition.
Apart from this, we also have had these observations validated through other means. And when we say “means”, we do not mean things such as “vibrational feeds” or pendulums or other “modern specialists”. Our means included infra-red photograph, as well as a drawing done by a specialist in detecting cavities underground – a man who impressed us by merely looking at the site and confirming on a purely visual basis where we thought the fault-line ran – and which was then confirmed by his own instruments. Still, we need to note that this drawing does not include tracing the fault-line inside the church – no measurement of any sort has ever occurred inside the chapel. We also need to stipulate that at no single point in time, any metal detector or other “illegal” instrument was used – furthermore, these instruments are worthless in trying to find or verify what needed to be verified. Largely, we just took photographs and there is nothing that forbids anyone from taking photographs in Perillos, in or outside the church.

The mortuary chamber of the ladies

Let us, for the moment, add a number of smaller elements. First, we find it more than striking that no-one has ever asked the question where the lords of Perillos were buried. If it had been posed, it would have led to several follow-up questions. It is clear that the small cemetery to the side of the church was never able to hold a sepulchre for these lords. One reason is that its proximity close to the first defensive wall would weaken that structure. We know that only the lords of Perillos were buried inside the crypt. So where was the rest of the family buried? It is equally clear that once again the small cemetery to the side is not equipped for such a structure either. And the available evidence confirms that not a single Perillos was buried there. So… Where is the female sepulchre? It is once again bizarre that this question was never posed, and even though we have since been able to discover the history of this site as well as its location, as no-one has ever asked us this question… it definitely seems that a veil of forgetfulness has descended over many. Though we will talk about this forgotten dimension, everyone can rest assured that we will never give a precise location as to its whereabouts, so that those present inside can remain undisturbed. (Let us equally note that we have no need to enter the chapel if ever we wanted to penetrate into the crypt underneath, for we know the location of the “second entrance – this merely to prevent certain rumours from beginning to circulate.)

The final hour of battle and the beginning of a secret

Let us hurry back to the chapel, where the lords of Perillos are hiding, with some of their most trusted subordinates, his chaplain, his wife and children. The door will not hold for much longer. The assailants are sure that Perillos will soon die. What a silly idea to have run into that chapel, which was a mortal trap, for which he will now pay, his enemies think.
We noted in the first part that no-one, from the outside, had any way of knowing what was going on inside. There, the small group does have some lighting available to them: some candles and oil lamps. The escape mechanism is now activated by the lord… an opening slowly reveals itself… perhaps a pungent odour fills the chapel. We can imagine some people – no doubt the small children and the women first – take a step back. But though the smell may not be inviting, surely it is better than facing death? So the group descends, into the crypt, past coffins or however the lords have been laid out. Once everyone is inside, the lord himself, as he is probably the only one who knows how to operate the system, closes the entrance behind him.
At best, anyone who will enter the chapel in the next few minutes or hours, will find it empty. The assailants may not know what just happened. This group of people could, indeed, merely hide here, in the crypt. When the entrance is breached and the inside of the chapel found to be deserted, indeed, someone must think this is the work of the devil, for these people have disappeared into nothingness. Perhaps all the rumours that circulated about this family were true after all? After all, weren’t they always in league with the devil?

A Maltese treasure

Fortunately, the family does not need to remain in this land of the dead. Somewhere in the crypt, the path continues, taking the party further away from the village, away from the assailants. The path follows the subterranean veins of Mother Earth; it was nature that built it; it is nature that provided an exit, and it is not too far from the two sites identified on Saunière’s model.
Let us note one final element: Ramon de Perellos y Roccaful wanted to be buried here. Did he still want to be buried like any other Grandmaster? If so, it implies that he was buried with all the medals and insignia that come with his rank. In short: it would mean that there is an absolute fortune down here. Perhaps Saunière found it? Perhaps this is how he got his hands on the famous chalice that he offered to one of his colleagues and which was then found out to originally be from the Order of Malta? Or perhaps the Grandmaster is still surrounded by the full splendour of all that was entrusted to his grave – and that in itself would be a major treasure that would wet many peoples’ appetite. The only question is how long anyone will let him sleep in peace!

André Douzet
This article is dedicated to the memory of Mary Reid

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