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Origin and history

The church Saint-Denis-de-l'Estrée, known as the New Church, is a Catholic building built in the 3rd quarter of the 19th century by architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc, famous for its neo-Gothic restorations. Located boulevard Jules-Guesde in Saint-Denis (Seine-Saint-Denis), it is part of the axis of the Royal Basilica of Saint-Denis, extending the Rue de la République. Its construction, contemporary of the restoration of the basilica, met the need for a more spacious place of worship after the destruction of the local churches during the Revolution. The building, blessed in 1866, combines a bell tower with a six-span nave flanked by lows, and a polygonal bedside with an crypt.

The history of the site dates back to the Merovingian period, with a first church dedicated to Saint Denis built on Via Strata (Gallo-Roman Way), at the origin of the toponym "Estrée". Cited in the Miracula Sancti Dyionisii in 834, it housed a monastic school in the 11th century and welcomed Pope Innocent II in 1131. Suger, Abbé de Saint-Denis, established a priory there in 1137. Destroyed during the Wars of Religion (1567), then during the Revolution, it was replaced by the Carmel Chapel, which became too small. The municipality entrusted Viollet-le-Duc with the construction of the present church, whose stained glass (1866), originally designed by Mr.Oudinot, has since been replaced.

The church has been listed as historical monuments since July 23, 1981, with a specific ranking for its stained glass windows. His great symphonic organ, directed by Merklin-Schutz in 1868, and his bell melted in 1867 by Rosier-Martin, bear witness to his rich artistic heritage. The crypt, accessible by a staircase behind the choir, houses a chapel dedicated to the Polish community. The symbolic alignment with the Royal Basilica, the burial place of the kings of France, underscores its historic and urban importance in the city of Saint-Denis.

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