St. Pierre-ès-Liens Church

The Saint-Pierre-ès-Liens church is a Catholic parish church located in Vaux-sur-Seine, Yvelines, France.

Of the first parish church, founded in 1154, the Romanesque western portal remains. From the end of the 12th century onwards, the old chapel, which had been remodeled when the parish was erected, was successively replaced by the present Gothic building. The construction starts with the apse, characterized by a hemicyclic chevet, and ends with the nave, which is initially flanked by two collateral vaults of the same height. This is also a particularity of the church of Vaux. Its great stylistic homogeneity, apart from the later alterations, and the care given to its decoration, are quite remarkable.

But the church apparently suffered significant damage during the Hundred Years' War. Its south aisle was demolished, its bell tower was repaired in a simplified manner, and the nave and its north aisle were re-vaulted in the middle of the 16th century or shortly thereafter. The old supports were damaged or replaced by new engaged pillars, and the new vaults do not fit well with the original architecture. Even more damaging to the aesthetics of the church was the underpinning of the northeast pier of the transept crossing, which was replaced by a massive masonry structure, and broke the harmony of the eastern parts.

Restored in 1970, the church of Saint-Pierre still has enough authentic elements to give an idea of what it was in the 13th century, and its chevet in particular is of great interest. The registration as a historical monument by decree of July 19, 1926 underlines its heritage value. Today, it is affiliated with the parish of Meulan, and hosts early Sunday masses every other Saturday at 6:30 pm, as well as special celebrations.