Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The chapel of the Visitation, known as the "round chapel", was built between 1780 and 1782 by the sisters of the Visitation in Nancy, on the site of a convent founded in 1667 by Duke Charles IV of Lorraine. This 18th century vestige, of neoclassical pioneer style in Lorraine, is distinguished by its square plan housing a circular chapel surmounted by a caisson dome. Its sober architecture, decorated with an ancient portal carved by Johann Joseph Söntgen, makes it a unique building in the region.

During the Revolution, the chapel became a museum of fine arts in 1793, home to major works such as the Annunciation of Caravage or a copy of the Marriage of Cana of Verona. In 1801 the museum was transferred to Stanislas Square, but the chapel remained linked to Nancy's cultural history, visited in 1867 by Emperor Francis Joseph in tribute to François de Lorraine. Its role evolved with its transformation into a chapel of the Imperial High School in 1802, integrated into educational buildings.

Ranked a historic monument in 1916, the chapel preserves traces of its religious and museum past. Its ancient peristyle and its glass window illuminating the dome testify to its architectural heritage. Today linked to the lycée Henri-Poincaré, she exceptionally opens herself to the public, especially during the Journées du Patrimoine, perpetuating her dual status as a place of memory and knowledge.

The history of the chapel is also marked by figures such as Joseph Laurent, painter and first curator of the revolutionary museum in 1793. He defended the collections against looting during the Restoration, illustrating the heritage tensions of the time. The adjacent convent of the Minimes, founded in 1592 by Christophe de Bassompierre, was destroyed during the Revolution, leaving only the chapel and a wing as witnesses to this monastic past.

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