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Origin and history

The chapel of the Jesuit College of Eu was founded at the end of the 16th century by the Jesuits, on the initiative of Henri de Guise, says the Balafré, husband of Catherine de Clèves, Countess of Eu. The assassination of Henry in 1588 delayed work, but Catherine de Clèves had them taken over and completed in 1613, adding a chapel dedicated to Ignace de Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus. The mausoleums of the Duke of Guise and Catherine, commissioned in 1627 by sculptors Nicolas Guillain and Barthélémy Tremblay, adorn the choir. Henri, a symbolic cenotaph (his body was burned), is decorated with bas-reliefs evoking his military exploits.

The college, closed in 1762 after the Jesuit banishment, became a municipal establishment. During the Revolution, it was abolished in 1792, but the city maintained education there. The chapel, classified as a historical monument in 1846, illustrates the Jesuit style: a symmetrical three-span facade, a mixture of stone and brick, and Roman influences. Its portal, surmounted by a bas-relief of angels supporting a cartridge, is framed by Tuscan and ionic columns. An oculus and triangular pediments crown the whole.

Inside, the Guise-Clève mausoleums, framed by allegories (Religion, Force, Prudence, Faith), testify to their patronage. The chapel, today a place of exhibitions, also preserves architectural elements like an octagonal turret. The facades and roofs of the college, as well as its cellar and courtyards, were registered in 2022. The library, transferred in 1973 to the municipal castle, had been neglected for 150 years.

The site reflects the religious and political history of Normandy: Jesuit foundations in the 16th century, revolutionary transformations, and early heritage preservation. Funeral sculptures, major works of the late Renaissance, highlight the role of Eu as an artistic home under the influence of the Guise. The chapel remains a rare example in France of this hybrid style, inspired by the Jesuit church in Rome.

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