Opened in 1909, Vasa Church is a monumental building in the new romantic style with decorative detail in the Jugendstil. The church is built of granite from the nearby Bohus county and was designed by Yngve Rasmussen.
The interior is dominated by a huge mural painting in the chancel portraying the ascension of Christ. It was painted by Albert Eldh in the 1920s. The other end of the church is dominated by the original organ facade.
References:The historical centre of Briançon is a strongly fortified town, built by Vauban to defend the region from Austrians in the 17th century. Its streets are very steep and narrow, though picturesque. Briançon lies at the foot of the descent from the Col de Montgenèvre, giving access to Turin, so a great number of other fortifications have been constructed on the surrounding heights, especially towards the east.
The Savoyards made two raids into French territory in 1691 and 1692. As a result, Vauban was dispatched to inspect the frontier defences, which had been ill-equiped to deal with the attack from Savoy. He returned to the area in 1700 to check on the progress that had been made since his first visit. When Vauban visited Briançon, work on the defences had already started under a local engineer, Monsieur d"Angrogne in 1692.