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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church Saint-Savinien-le-Jeune de Sens, located in Yonne in Burgundy-Franche-Comté, was built in 1618 as a chapel of the convent of the Penitents under the name of Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Secours. Funded by Monsignor Jean du Perron, brother of Cardinal Jacques Davy du Perron, it became the property of the penitents before being contested by the Benedictines in 1682. During the Revolution (1789), his land was dismembered and the building turned into a hay hangar. Rehabilitated in 1822, it became a parish church in 1826 and was renovated in 1893.

Between 2010 and 2017, the church was closed for restoration because of the collapse of its structure and the risk of collapse. Consolidation (drawing, strengthening of the entrances, replacement of the cover) was carried out to stabilize the building, carried by local associations such as Sens Patrimoine. Despite these efforts, persistent problems (infiltration, moisture, degradation of interior settings) required additional interventions, with alerts to DRAC and UDAP.

The building is distinguished by a monumental arch of the Restoration, decorated with a rare representation of God the Father surrounded by angels, as well as paintings and statuary of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, mostly classified. Since 2014, the church has remained an active place of worship (messes, weddings) while symbolizing the challenges of preserving religious heritage in urban areas.

His recent history is marked by the engagement of local actors, such as Mike Baray (died 2023), founder of the Association for the Safeguarding of Senoese Churches, then taken over by Mkrtitch Martirossyan (President of Sens Patrimoine). These initiatives are aimed at forcing the municipality to ensure the sustainability of the site, between legal litigation and awareness-raising campaigns on its critical health condition.

Architecturally, the church illustrates the transition between convent chapel and parish, with Baroque elements (decorated arch, coat of arms) and preserved liturgical furniture. Its registration as a historical monument in 2014 underscores its heritage value, although structural threats and lack of public resources make it a case of school for the preservation of religious heritage in France.

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