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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Church of the Trinity of La Chapelle-en-Serval, erected in the 16th century, replaces an earlier building linked to the ancient parish of Geni, which disappeared during the Hundred Years War. The first construction campaign (first half of the 16th century) concerns only the abside and last span, while the nave of the previous church continues to be used. The rest of the building was completed later, in a sober and repetitive Gothic style, characteristic of the rural reconstructions of the period. The bell tower, inspired by that of St Peter's Church in Senlis, dates from the end of the Renaissance, and the gate was rebuilt in 1818.

The parish of La Chapelle-en-Serval was founded in 1246, after the abandonment of the village of Geni, whose income is attached to Orry-la-Ville. The present church, although judged by a "nearly zero archaeological and artistic interest" by Eugene Müller, illustrates the late Gothic architecture of the countryside, marked by simple vaults, monocylindrical pillars and the absence of elaborate decoration. There is a three-sided bedside with narrow windows on the right side of the bedside, while the lower side features arch keys decorated with Renaissance motifs or empty shields.

Ranked as a historical monument in 1949, the church houses remarkable furniture, including a 14th century Virgin with Child classified in 1912 and two paintings by Mario Salvador de Maella, director of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid. Today attached to the parish of the Holy Spirit of the Serval, it welcomes Masses about once a month, alternating with the neighbouring villages. Its bell tower, a simplified replica of Senlis, dominates a building surrounded by its old cemetery, transformed into a lawn.

The site preserves traces of its medieval history, such as the funeral liter of the president of Brion, local lord, or the foundation plates of the 17th and 18th centuries. External architecture, sober, is distinguished by vertical foothills and an apparatus of irregular bellows, while the interior, weakly lit, reflects the economic and technical constraints of rural parishes after the destruction of the Hundred Years War.

The church of the Trinity thus embodies the modest but representative heritage of the Hauts-de-France, bearing witness to post-conflict reconstructions and local religious life throughout the centuries. Its inscription in historical monuments underscores its documentary value, despite its exceptional lack of ornamentation.

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