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Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Saints-Anges-Gardiens, located in the district of Gravelle in Saint-Maurice (Val-de-Marne), was built to replace a modest boathouse used as a chapel. The latter, nicknamed the "Bathleum of Bethlehem", showed precarious conditions of worship before the 1930s. A mosaic dated 1931, signed by Mr. Lepelle, still adorns one of his pinions. The initiative to build a real church came from Abbé Songaylo, supported by a communal subscription, in order to respond to the population growth of the neighbourhood and the increase in the number of parishioners.

The building, designed by architect Jean Tandeau de Marsac between 1931 and 1934, is part of the Cardinal's Buildings movement, designed to provide the Paris region with modern places of worship. Blessed in 1934 by Cardinal Verdier, the church was dedicated to priests and religious who died during the First World War. His interior decorations, completed in 1946, were blessed by Paul-Louis Touzé. Labeled "Twentieth Century Heritage" in 2011, it symbolizes the architectural and artistic innovation of its time, mixing reinforced concrete, red bricks and Art Deco stained glass windows.

The architecture of the church rests on a Greek cross plan in Byzantine style, marked by four large reinforced concrete arches and a facade preceded by a porch. The bell tower, covered with a quadrangular pyramid, and the inclined roofs give it a distinctive silhouette. The modern materials used – boucharded concrete, bricks, metal frame – evoke both the industrial strength and aesthetics of the garden towns. The unstable terrain, situated between two arms of the Marne, required the sinking of 70 piles at 12 meters depth to stabilize the structure.

The stained glass windows of the Transept Nord, made by Louis Barillet in 1935, illustrate the role of guardian angels in everyday life, in a marked Art Deco style. These works, organized in lancets, are inspired by biblical passages (Heb 1:14) and were originally to be supplemented by scenes of the Passion, never installed. Inside, the frescoes of Nicolas Untersteller (Prix de Rome 1928) and his wife Hélène Delaroche, executed between 1942 and 1946, celebrate the glorification of angels. The choir presents an apocalyptic vision according to Saint John, while the baptistery, with blue tones, represents Adam and Eve assisted by angels.

The church also houses a Cavaillé-Coll organ dating back to 1840, installed on the narthex stand. This detail, combined with the richness of its interior decor – frescoes, stained glass and mosaics – underscores its status as a major testimony of 20th-century sacred art in Île-de-France. Recently renovated, it remains an active place of worship and a remarkable example of modern religious heritage, combining functionality, symbolism and technical innovation.

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