Église Notre-Dame-des-Victoires de Lille dans le Nord

Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Notre-Dame-des-Victoires is built in the Faubourg district of Béthune in Lille, a rural area that initially became a major industrial pole at the end of the 19th century. This district, located outside the city walls after the extension of 1858, is transformed under the impulse of the cotton spinning Thiris, which extends over 19 hectares before the First World War. The influx of workers and the development of housing and community facilities, often financed by industrialists, make it necessary to create a suitable place of worship.

The building of the church was decided in the 1920s to meet the spiritual needs of the 2,700 inhabitants of the area, the existing chapel near the "Crèche Thirez" being considered too small. The work, entrusted to the Lille architect Jean Delrue, began in 1935 and ended in 1937. The building, inaugurated at the end of this year, embodies art deco architecture with Dutch influences, blending coloured bricks, ceramics and concrete.

The Faubourg district of Bethune illustrates the urbanization linked to industrialization, where bosses, like the Thiezes, play a central role in social and religious organization. The branch, the economic heart of the sector, attracts a large working population, requiring infrastructure such as schools, housing and places of worship. The church is thus part of a paternalistic logic, aimed at guiding the lives of employees while meeting their community needs.

The building is distinguished by its bold architectural style, typical of the 1930s, with a massive bell tower housing a carillon of eight bells melted by Alfred Paccard in 1938. This carillon, restored in 1983, remains a remarkable element although rarely used. The combination of modern (beton) and traditional materials (bricks, ceramics) reflects the innovations of the period, while anchoring the church in the urban landscape of Lille.

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