Chapelle Saint-Laurent d'Eu, Chapel in Eu, Normandy, France
The chapelle Saint-Laurent d'Eu is a small red-brick chapel with stone trim built in a neo-Romanesque style on a hill northeast of the town of Eu, in Normandy. The west-facing front is topped by a stone statue of the saint, and inside, wooden ceiling beams and stained glass windows tell the story of the chapel's past.
A priest named Leprévost founded a first chapel on this site in 1640, near a sandstone cross associated with Saint Laurent O'Toole. The chapel was rebuilt several times after being destroyed, most recently after a storm in the late 19th century, and the Le Beuf family financed the current version that stands today.
The chapel is dedicated to Saint Laurent O'Toole, an archbishop from Dublin who died in Eu in 1180. Every May, pilgrims walk up from the town's main church to the chapel in a nine-day procession that keeps that memory alive.
The chapel can be reached on foot via the old pilgrimage path or by car using a country road, with parking available behind the building. The interior is only open on specific days, including the European Heritage Days in September and Thursday afternoons in summer, so it is worth checking before going.
The altar inside the chapel holds a reliquary made from Irish stone sourced from the region where Saint Laurent O'Toole was born. A three-language inscription on that altar marks the link between Ireland and Normandy that this site has carried for centuries.
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