Église Saint-Pierre de Mâcon
Mâcon's largest church, a neo-Romanesque landmark whose twin spires rise above the Saône.
- Abbey or church
- 1 h 17 from Beaune
- Allow 20 to 30 minutes
- Mâcon
€275one way from Beaune with a private driver
At a glance
- Official website
- macon-tourisme.com
Getting there
Private driver from Beaune: 1 h 17 by road (104 km), €275 one way for the whole car.
Or add it to our full-day wine tour plus two hours, €700.
Coming by train or plane? Transfers from stations and airports →
About the place
The Église Saint-Pierre faces the town hall in the centre of Mâcon, and its two stone spires rise above the roofs of the riverside. Built between 1859 and 1865, it shows the 19th-century taste for reviving past styles, with a Romanesque façade and a Gothic nave. Inside are rich decorations of the period, a painting by Jean-François de Troy and an organ by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll.
What you will see
Three round-arched portals open the façade, their carved tympana showing the Last Judgement in the centre, with the Assumption of the Virgin and the Crucifixion of Saint Peter on either side. Inside, a Gothic-style nave of six rib-vaulted bays rises to 18 metres beneath a gallery, with capitals carved by Mathieu Gautheron. Look for Jean-François de Troy's Baroque painting of 1732, Vincent de Paul preaching before the general of the king's galleys, and for the restored paintings in the ambulatory.
History
The town of Mâcon decided to build a new church for this district and gave the project to André Berthier (1811–1873), architect of the department and a pupil of Henri Labrouste. The church went up between 1859 and 1865 and was blessed by Bishop de Marguerye. Money ran short before the end: when Napoleon III visited Mâcon in August 1860, the parish priest told him that 200,000 francs were still needed, and the emperor ordered a study to speed up a solution.
Painters and craftsmen of the time decorated the chapels, among them the decorative painters Jean-Baptiste Beuchot, Édouard Krug and Victor Bussière, and the Paris glassmaker Édouard Didron. The organ, built by Cavaillé-Coll in 1866, is classified as a historic monument. In 1987 the sculptor Philippe Kaeppelin made new furniture for the choir, and in May 2025 the church itself, with its front steps, was listed as a historic monument.
Planning your visit
Tips for your visit
The church is open every day and entry is free; visits pause during services. It stands on the place Saint-Pierre, a short walk from the Saône quays, the Pont Saint-Laurent and the Musée des Ursulines. Allow 20 to 30 minutes. For the best view of the twin spires, look back from the Pont Saint-Laurent.
Around here
What to combine with Église Saint-Pierre de Mâcon on the same day, nearest first.
Questions
Église Saint-Pierre de Mâcon is about 1 h 17 from Beaune by road (104 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €275 for the whole car, up to 4 guests.
Did you know? At 75 metres long and 30 metres wide, Saint-Pierre is the largest church in Mâcon.
Sources
Église Saint-Pierre de Mâcon with a private driver
€275 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests