Church of Saint-Laurent

Paris - La Belle Époque

Saint-Laurent is a Catholic church in the 10th arrondissement of Paris at 68 bis Boulevard de Magenta. A series of churches occupied the site since the 10th century. It is named for Saint Lawrence, an early Christian martyr who was executed in Rome by the Roman Emperor Valerian in 258 AD. It has been listed since 2016 as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture.

The earliest parts of the church date to the 10th century and 15th century, while the facade was rebuilt in the 19th century during the Second French Empire, to fit into the intersection of three new boulevards built by Napoleon III and his deputy Baron Haussmann.

The architecture features a very ornate Flamboyant facade, constructed in the 19th century. The art and decoration includes an exceptional collection of 19th and 20th century stained glass windows. and an important collection of 19th-century religious paintings and sculpture.

History

Plan of Paris in 1609 showing the Church (bottom right)

The church was built on the site of an ancient Roman road which passed through Paris. An earlier building on the site is mentioned in several ancient sources, but no trace of it has been found.

The current church was dedicated in 1429, and was rebuilt and enlarged several times. One portion of the bell tower is believed to have been built before that date.[2] The choir appears to have built in the 15th century, the nave in the 17th century, The outer aisles of the choir and the oval chapel of the Virgin were built in the beginning of the 18th century. The classical early facade, similar to that of the Jesuit style, was completed in 1621, but was demolished in the 19th century and replaced with a Flamboyant Gothic facade.

During the French Revolution, the church was closed and in 1795 turned into a Temple of Reason In 1797, the Catholic Church was allowed to return, but had to share the building with a temple dedicated to a movement called Theophilanthropy, and still later with a Temple of the Elderly. In 1802, under an agreement between Napoleon Bonaparte and the Pope, the exclusive use of the building was finally returned to the Catholic Church.

Between 1862 and 1865, the church underwent another major reconstruction to accommodate the new Paris boulevards built by Napoleon III. The architect Constant-Defeux demolished the old facade and built a new one aligned with the street, which combined the Flamboyant with the earlier Gothique Classique or High Gothic.

This area is a fetter for Jean Phillip du Pont