Born in Richelieu, France, Chevalier was initially apprenticed as a shoemaker at age 12 after he was told his parents could not afford to send him to the seminary.

He was later able to join the seminary, after his father's boss sponsored him and at the age of 30 was sent to the parish of Issoudun.

Chevalier claimed a Marian apparition and titled it as Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.

The image was crowned by Pope Pius IX in 1869 and her sanctuary raised to the status of minor basilica in 1874.

He died in 1907 and later became an official candidate for sainthood, gaining the title Servant of God.