Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

L'ermitage de Saint-Rouin is a chapel located in the commune of Beaulieu-en-Argonne, in the department of Meuse (Grand Est). Built between 1954 and 1961, it replaces a 17th-century oratory built on the site of a medieval hermitage where Saint Rouin, founder of the Beaulieu Abbey, lived. The building, with a trapezoidal rough concrete plan, is surmounted by an arrow and an aluminum cross of seven meters. It was designed by the Dominican and architect Louis-Bertrand Rayssiguier, student of Le Corbusier, with an interior design signed by Pierre Székely.

The windows, made in 1959, are inspired by the drawings of Kimié Bando, a ten-year-old Japanese child, daughter of Toshio Bando. The chapel also houses a 17th century altarpiece, classified in 1972. The building, an example of modern religious architecture, combines minimalism and symbolism, with geometric bays and a campanile overlooking the terrace. It was classified as a historical monument by decree of 20 November 1998.

The hermitage is part of a forest landscape in Argonne, the natural region of eastern France, and bears witness to a meeting between Christian tradition, contemporary art and international influences. Its history also reflects the liturgical renewal of the twentieth century, marked by altar-centered buildings and active participation of the faithful.

The construction was entrusted to the Berthold company of Dun-sur-Meuse, specializing in the raw concrete of de-forming, an emblematic technique of modernist architecture. The site, isolated to the northwest of the village, retains a spiritual and contemplative dimension, linked to its origin of hermitage and to the figure of Saint Rouin, local patron.

The protected elements include the chapel itself (cadastre B 624) and its liturgical furniture, such as the altar, the door or the benigner, all designed by Pierre Szekely. The property now belongs to a cult association, ensuring its preservation and its openness to the public.

The chapel of Saint Rouin finally illustrates the collaboration between artists and religious in the post-Second World War reconstruction, when the Catholic Church sought to modernize its places of worship while preserving their sacred dimension.

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