Our Lady of Good Help and Saint Martin

From All Saints to Palm Sunday :
2d and 4th Saturday of the Month : 6.30 pm
From Easter to 30 October :
2d and 4th Saturday of the Month : 3.30 pm

Situated near to the town of Saint Omer, in the valley of the river Aa, the church of Our Lady of Good Help and Saint Martin of Hallines, is a small cathedral which on first sight seems to have come from the Middle Ages. Yet it was built in the 19th century by the architect Clovis Normand, a disciple of Viollet-le-Duc, and uses all the elements of the gothic style. The visitor will appreciate the gargoyles, the pinnacles, the rose-windows, and the turrets which decorate harmoniously the building.

Inside the building, the height of the vaulting is impressive, the decoration is sober and majestic, and bears witness to the competence of the different local companies who worked on the construction of the church. An exceptional and rare element is the sanctuary tiling, showing  the twelve signs of the zodiac, the ages of life, the four elements….

When the foundations were being excavated, a 13th century statue of a Virgin and Child, hidden during the Revolution, was uncovered. Called Our Lady of Good Help, the church was dedicated in1872.

It is a church which fans of the gothic style will appreciate.