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Origin and history

The Protestant temple of Charenton-le-Pont, located 12 rue Guérin, is a religious building emblematic of Protestant history in the Paris region. He was the successor of two earlier temples, built after the edict of Nantes (1598), which for the first time authorized a Protestant place of worship less than five leagues from Paris. The first temple, built in 1607 by James II Androuet du Cerceau, was destroyed by fire in 1621. His successor, erected in 1623 by Salomon de Brosse and Jean Thiriot, became a symbol of unity between Calvinists and Lutherans during the National Synod of 1631, before being shaved in 1685 after the revocation of the edict of Nantes.

The original site, today in the commune of Saint-Maurice, also housed a convent established in 1700 on the ruins of the temple, before being sold as a national good during the Revolution. No remains of these buildings remain. The present temple, inaugurated in 1889 in a separate location, is distinguished by its sober architecture: a rectangular plan surmounted by a slate roof, a wooden awning porch, and an octagonal bell tower with an arrow. Its bay windows and its history bear witness to French Protestantism.

Under the Ancien Régime Charenton played a key role for Parisian Protestants, deprived of places of worship in the capital. Henry IV had had to attest that Charenton was far enough from Paris to allow a temple there, thus bypassing the restrictions of the edict of Nantes. This temple became a spiritual and intellectual center, welcoming influential pastors such as Pierre Du Moulin or Jean Claude, until its destruction in 1685. The present parish, a member of the United Protestant Church of France, has perpetuated this heritage since the 19th century.

Recent archaeological excavations, such as those led by Jean-Yves Dufour in 2019, have provided a better understanding of the location and organization of the ancient temples and their Huguenot cemetery. These works highlight the historical importance of the site, marked by events such as the Synod of 1631, where the common communion between Calvinists and Lutherans was decided. The present temple, although more recent, embodies this Protestant memory in a changing neighbourhood.

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