The Church of Saint Joan of Arc (French: ''L'église Sainte-Jeanne-d'Arc'') is a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

church in the city centre of

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

, northern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The church of Saint

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronati ...

was completed in 1979 in the centre of the ancient

market square The market square (or sometimes, the market place) is a Town square, square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world.Place du Vieux-Marché Place may refer to: Geography * Place (United States Census Bureau), defined as any concentration of population ** Census-designated place, a populated area lacking its own municipal government * "Place", a type of street or road name ** Often ...

, the place where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake for

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

in 1431. A small garden, Le Bouchet, which is outside and to the north of the church marks the exact spot. The modern church Sainte-Jeanne d'Arc and the adjacent market halls were designed by the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Louis Arretche Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS Louis, HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also

Derived or associated te ...

, who was commissioned in 1969. The sweeping curves of the structure are meant to evoke both the flames that consumed Joan of Arc and an overturned

longship Longships were a type of specialised Scandinavian warships that have a long history in Scandinavia, with their existence being archaeologically proven and documented from at least the fourth century BC. Originally invented and used by the Nors ...

. Many early Christian churches were designed in the shape of an overturned

boat A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size, shape, cargo or passenger capacity, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically found on inl ...

. The market halls simultaneously resemble smaller overturned boats and

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...

with gaping mouths, which are also rich Christian symbols. The tiled roof echoes this theme and forms a covered walkway over the square.

Stained glass

The

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

windows come from the 16th century Church of Saint Vincent, whose ruins are located a few metres away. The old church was almost completely destroyed in 1944 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, but the windows had been removed and stored in a safe location during the war. They were then incorporated into the Church of Saint Joan of Arc. The 13 window panels depict Christ's childhood, Passion, Crucifixion and Resurrection, and life events of St.Peter, St. Anne and Saint Anthony of Padua: * Window of St. Peter’s life, 1520-1530, gift of the Boyvins, lords of Bonnetot; * Window of St. Anne, 1520-1530, by Jean Le Vieil and offered by the Compostela brotherhood; * Window of the Virgin’s Triumph, ordered in 1515 and completed circa 1522, work of Jean and Engrand Le Prince; * Window of St. Anne’s Tree, 1520-1530; * Window of the life of St. John the Baptist, completed in 1526, work of Engrand Le Prince; * Window of the Œuvres de Miséricorde, completed in 1520-1530, work of Engrand and maybe of Jean Le Prince; * Window of St. Anthony of Padoua, 1520-1530; * Window of the Saints, 1520-1530; * Window of the childhood and public life of Christ, 1520-1530, gift of the Le Roux de Bourgtheroulde; * Window of the Passion, 1520-1530; * Window of the Crucifixion, 1520-1530; * Window of the glorious life of Christ, 1520-1530; * Window of the martyrdom of St. Vincent, 1520-1530, gift of the Le Roux, lords of Esprevier. File:RouenVitrauxStVincent 01.jpg File:RouenVitrauxStVincent 02.jpg File:RouenVitrauxStVincent 03.jpg File:RouenVitrauxStVincent 04.jpg

References

{{coord, 49.4429, 1.0883, type:landmark_region:FR, display=title Joan of Arc Roman Catholic churches in Rouen