The Church of Saint-Éloi (), nicknamed the Cathedral of the Sands, is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church in

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

, France. It was listed as a

Historic Monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

in 1916,, whereas the belfry of the original church across the street was listed in 1840. The belfry is also part of the

World Heritage World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

-listed

Belfries of Belgium and France The Belfries of Belgium and France are a group of 56 historical buildings designated by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites, in recognition of the civic (rather than church) Belfry (architecture), belfries serving as an architectural manifestation of ...

History

The original church of the mid-15th century had the shape of a Latin cross. It was consecrated around 1443. It is said to have been erected by prime contractors from

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

on the site of St. John's Hospice. In 1558, the French troops led by Maréchal de Thermes invaded the city and burnt the church. Only the tower survived. The re-construction of the church started in 1559 under the supervision of prime contractor Jean de Renneville and ended in 1567. The sanctuary was enlarged to the east, the main nave was elevated and the side aisles were re-built with chapels. However, the works were stopped in 1585 because of a lack of funding. The old tower remained isolated from the new church by the ruins of the original church and served as a bell tower, municipal belfry and daymark. The original project was never ended. The space between the new church and the belfry was transformed into a public pathway in 1591, then into a street in 1731. In 1782, extension works were made by architect

Victor Louis Victor Louis (; 10 May 1731, Paris – 2 July 1800, Paris) was a French architect, disqualified on a technicality from winning the Prix de Rome in architecture in 1755. Life He was born Louis-Nicolas Louis in Paris. He did not adopt the name V ...

on the behalf of intendant de Calonne to cope with the population growth. Victor Louis offered to move the outer walls beyond the abutments of the side aisles and to merge the two side chapels to build two additional naves. The works lasted until 1787. The campanile added in 1610 was demolished and a new façade (dated 1785) was built. The façade is a Classical portico with pediments and pillars. Between 1793 and 1795, the building was used as a

Temple of Reason A Temple of Reason () was, during the French Revolution, a state atheist temple for a new belief system created to replace Christianity: the Cult of Reason, which was based on the ideals of reason, virtue, and liberty. This "religion" was supposed ...

. In 1882, the disintegrating façade was demolished and replaced with a new one. The Gothic Revival project of architect was selected. The first stone was laid on April 11, 1887, and the new façade was ended in 1889 by the city architect . The church was heavily damaged during the First World War, in 1915 and 1917. After long restoration works funded by the war damage compensation ('' dommages de guerre''), the church was re-opened. But in May and June 1940, it was hit by

incendiary bombs Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires. They may destroy structures or sensitive equipment using fire, and sometimes operate as anti-personnel weaponry. Incendiarie ...

and only the walls survived. Even though the church was re-opened for worship in 1977, the restoration works lasted until 1985.

Architecture

The long church is made of bricks, except for the window frames, the pillars of the interior and the façade that are made of white stone. The interior of the church has five aisles, the central aisle being wider than the other ones. The aisles lead to a double

ambulatory The ambulatory ( 'walking place') is the covered passage around a cloister or the processional way around the east end of a cathedral or large church and behind the high altar. The first ambulatory was in France in the 11th century but by the 13t ...

with five

apse chapel An apse chapel, apsidal chapel, or chevet is a chapel in traditional Christian church architecture, which radiates tangentially from one of the bays or divisions of the apse. It is reached generally by a semicircular passageway, or ambulatory, ext ...

s. The nave has three bays, while the choir has three bays and five ambulatory bays. Two sacristies are adjacent to two bays of the second side aisle of the choir.

Furniture

The major part of the furniture prior to 1940 was destroyed. Thus, the church benefited of donations of furniture from the Church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste of the 18th and 19th centuries. The stained glass windows of the choir and the

rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window'' wa ...

were made by

Pierre Gaudin Pierre Gaudin (1908–1973), son of Jean Gaudin (1879–1954) and grandson of Félix Gaudin (1851–1930) was a glass painter and mosaic artist. His studio executed mosaic designs and stained-glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a ...

. The other stained glass windows were made by from the drafts of painter . The modern main organ was made by Gonzaled in 1970. It has three 56-chord keyboards of each, a 32-chord mechanical pedalboard, and electric stops. It was recently restored and enlarged by Bernard Dargassies.

Tomb

The sacristy of Saint-Éloi hosts the remains of the corsair

Jean-Bart The was a French Car, automobile manufactured in 1907 only. Successor to the Prosper-Lambert, the company built Drive shaft, shaft-driven cars, single-Cylinder (engine), cylinders of 9 hp and fours of 16 hp and 40 hp. References

...

(1650–1702) who became famous for the

Battle of Texel The naval Battle of Texel or Battle of Kijkduin took place off the western coast of the island of Texel on 21 August 1673 (11 August O.S.) between the Dutch and the combined English and French fleets. It was the last major battle of the T ...

Gallery

Dunkerque beffroi 2.jpg, The

belfry The belfry /ˈbɛlfri/ is a structure enclosing bells for ringing as part of a building, usually as part of a bell tower or steeple. It can also refer to the entire tower or building, particularly in continental Europe for such a tower attached ...

Saint Eloi von Belfried von Dünkirchen aus gesehen.JPG, The church seen from the belfry Dunkerque St eloi nef.jpg, The central nave Dunkerque st eloi grand orgue.JPG, The main organ

References

Bibliography

* {{Authority control 16th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in France Churches in Nord (French department) Roman Catholic churches completed in 1560 16th-century establishments in France 1560 establishments in Europe Roman Catholic churches completed in 1782 Roman Catholic churches completed in 1887 Monuments historiques of Nord (French department) Buildings and structures in Dunkirk