The church of Varennes-le-Grand, named after Saint Germain, bishop of Auxerre, was built in the 15th century, and was lengthened by half in 1824, the bell tower being placed in the front. Wall paintings from 1560 with a coat of arms, discovered in 1872, represented Saint Sebastian, Saint Roch, and the Coronation of the Virgin. They disappeared with the demolition of this old church, between 1876 and 1878, an extension project of 1855 by the Chalonnais architect Narjoux not having been retained.
The project was taken up by the architect Berthelot; the work was awarded, then stopped, at two-thirds of the completion, by the bankruptcy of the contractor. In 1879, the town council voted to demolish the work that had been started and to rebuild the entire building according to the plans of the departmental architect Giroud. The work was awarded in 1880. The bell tower of the old church was kept, but it was struck by lightning in 1887. It had to be demolished and the bells were temporarily placed on the church square, which gives it its unfinished appearance.

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