[en] This paper aims to presenting the results of a research conducted in order to study the effect of water on the mechanical behaviour of the Lorraine Basin Colliery shale. The work performed can be divided into four main parts. The first part is dedicated to classical tests and it includes geological and mineralogical analysis as well as mechanical laboratory tests. The second part is devoted to the phenomenon of shale swelling under water effect. New procedures and equipment of testing were set up in order to characterise this swelling behaviour and to determine its model parameters. The tests performed in this second part are allowed to develop a phenomenological model which describes the elasto-visco-plastic behaviour of shales before and after saturation. The last phase of the work is dedicated to implement the new model in the finite element code VIPLEF in order to apply in tunnel excavated in swelling anisotropic rocks. (authors)