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Origin and history

The Collet-de-Dèze temple, built in 1646 with quartz and schist, is one of the oldest Protestant temples in France. He survived the destruction ordered by the edict of 1661, then the revocation of the edict of Nantes in 1685, thanks to the intervention of the Marquise de Portes. She converted him to a Catholic place, then to a hospital and prison, thus preserving his structure. A copy of the documents attesting to its preservation is kept in the temple.

During the repression of Protestantism, the temple served as a repository of weapons for royal troops before falling into ruins in the 18th century, used as a shed and barn. Confiscated to the Revolution and sold as national property, it was bought by the inhabitants in 1803, restored and reopened to Protestant worship. Its architecture, unchanged since 1646 (outside the posterior bell tower), is distinguished by a nave divided by an arch of stone in full hanger and a ground originally covered with Gardon pebbles.

In 1984, the temple belonged to the commune and remained an active place of worship within the United Protestant Church of France. Its interior, 10.5 m by 15.2 m, retains an apparent chestnut frame and unique decorative elements, such as a pebble mosaic forming geometric motifs. Its history reflects the religious tensions of the time and the resilience of Protestant communities in Lozère.

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