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Origin and history

The Protestant temple of Orléans originated in the local Reformed community, whose first place of worship, established in Checy in 1599, was destroyed after the revocation of the edict of Nantes in 1685. It was only in the 19th century that the community was able to rebuild a temple, marking its resurgence after more than a century of ban.

The present temple was erected between 1836 and 1839 at the site of the former church of St. Peter Empont, destroyed in 1830. Projected by Pastor Rosseloty and architect François-Narcisse Pagot, he adopted a central circular plan, initially surmounted by a wooden dome covered with zinc. This dome collapsed in 1912 and was replaced by an armed cement structure, the work of entrepreneur Edward Basin.

The interior preserves original elements such as the pulpit, made by Marchais, Rebut and Benaardeau, as well as woodwork signed Hourtin. The stand, supported by cast iron columns, bears witness to the craftsmanship of the time. During the Second World War, the temple was indirectly linked to acts of resistance: Coralie Beluse, director of a nearby Protestant orphanage, saved Jewish children, a commitment recognized in 2016 by the inauguration of a commemorative plaque.

Filed with the additional inventory of historical monuments in 1975, the temple illustrates both the turbulent history of Protestantism in France and the architectural evolution of places of worship in the 19th century. Its ionic portal, metopes decorated with medallions and social history make it an emblematic heritage of Orleans.

The parish, a member of the United Protestant Church of France, today perpetuates a cult and community tradition initiated more than four centuries ago, despite the historical ruptures suffered by the Orlean Reformed community.

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