Saint-Ambroise Church
Saint-Ambroise (French pronunciation: [sɛ̃.t‿ɑ̃.bʁwaz]) is a Roman Catholic parish church located in the 11th arrondissement in eastern Paris. It is dedicated to St. Ambrose (339-377), an Italian statesman and theologian who served as Bishop of Milan.
The church of Saint-Ambroise gave the neighborhood its name, the quartier Saint-Ambroise. The current structure replaced an earlier church of Saint-Ambroise, built in 1659, which was demolished to make room for the new boulevards built by Napoleon III. The church is 87 metres in length, and its towers are 68 metres high. It is served by the Metro station Saint-Ambroise.
First Church
The first chapel on the site was constructed in 1659 by the religious order of the Convent of the Annonciades de Popincourt, which had first occupied the site on Rue Popincourt in 1636. They left their convent in 1782, and two new streets were opened at the site in 1783, rue Saint-Ambroise and rue de Beauharnais.
In 1797, during the French Revolution, the church was closed and declared a national property, and was sold, but not demolished. In 1802 it was attached to the Parish of Saint_Maguerite. In August 1811 it was purchased by the City of Paris, which launched a program of restoration and enlargement under the direction of Etienne-Hippolyte Godde.
The church was renamed Notre-Dame de la Procession. Unlike the traditional east–west orientation of churches, it was oriented north-south to fit into neighboring streets. The church was formally blessed on 15 November 1818.
Second Church
The old church was demolished during the rebuilding carried it in the canter of Paris by Napoleon III and Baron Haussmann. It was torn down to make room for the new Boulevard Prince Eugene (now Boulevard Voltaire). A site nearby was offered for a new church at the head of the future Boulevard at the head of the new Boulevard. The new church was and work began in 1863 on new church at the head of the new Boulevard Voltaire.
The new church was designed by the architect Theodore Ballu. who was designated by Napoleon III as the official city architect for religious buildings. His churches included the Église de la Trinité (1861–1867), the Saint-Esprit Temple on Rue Roquépine, and the Church of Saint-Joseph (1866–1875). He also directed the Saint-Jacques Tower restoration (1854–1858)[1] and the construction of the Saint-Denis church in Argenteuil (1866).
Notable events
During the Paris Commune the church was briefly transformed into a meeting hall for the Proletarian Club, where speakers advocated socialism and feminism. It was also used storage depot for munitions.
L’Eglise de la Trinité was built between 1863 and 1868. The first mass was celebrated on 21 March, 1869. The construction lasted six years and officially cost 2,217,534 francs and fifty-eight centimes. The bells were blessed on April 29, 1869 in the presence of the Empress Eugenie, who was also the patroness of one of the bells.