Notre Dame de France History

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HISTORY

1865-1903

1903-1955

1955-present time

The Story of the Marist Fathers

FROM 1865-1903: THE EARLY YEARS
It was towards the midst of the XIXth century that Cardinal Wiseman, the then Archbishop of Westminster, became very concerned with the plight of the many ethnic minorities, mainly Europen, in London. He decided to create national parishes who would take charge of the spiritual needs of the catholics amongst the polish, italian or german immigrants and workers. He also conceived the idea of a mission amongst the neglected ‘lower-class' French of London.

For this purpose, the cardinal called on the ‘Marists', whose work in Spitafields and elsewhere he had come to appreciate.They promptly answered his call. Thus Father Charles Faure was designated by the Superior-General of the order to start working on the proposed task.

He was to give himself wholly and with much fervour to this work, despite the half-heartedness and even hostility that he met from the well-off and already well-established French of London. He went to beg for the necessary funds, as well as for prayers, in France, not only in religious circles but from anyone from any social background who showed interest in the project, whether it was from Empress Eugénie, who made a gift of 50 000 Francs, or from the anonymous worker who gave 3 francs, which was equivalent to his whole day's work.

With the money thus collected, he went looking for a piece of land, in Leicester Square known then as the ‘ most ill-famed ‘ French district. His choice went to the ‘Panorama' of Burford, which was the forerunner of the cinema in the shape of a rotunda, which accounts for the circular shape of the present church.

The construction of the church was entrusted to the architect Louis Auguste Boileau who was at the time one of the french promoters of ‘ iron architecture'. This first church, all in iron, became one of the architectural conversation-pieces of London. Apart from the church, the mission also consisted of a little hospital, an orphanage and a school run by the sisters of Saint Vincent de Paul.

FROM 1903 TO 1955: DESTRUCTION & RECONSTRUCTION
Throughout the years following its foundation, Notre Dame de France never lost sight of its mission, and never more so than throughout the second world war, during the occupation of France by the Germans. London became the rallying point of thousands of French soldiers, sailors and civilians who wanted to carry on the fight alongside their allies.

Sadly the church was partly destroyed, in November 1940, during the “ Battle of Britain”.
However thanks to the dedication of the `Marist Fathers', the spiritual needs of the French community in London were still met.

In September 1948, the newly-appointed Superior of Notre Dame de France, Father Deguerry, decided on the reconstruction of the church. He received the backing of the French ambassador, René Massigli, who obtained, as a special favour, an exceptional permit for reconstruction from Anthony Eden.

Notre Dame de France could also count on the help and well-informed advice of the learned French academic, Mr. René Varin, a high-ranking civil servant in the ‘Education Nationale', who was fulfilling the duties of cultural attaché at the French embassy in London.

The first stone of the new construction was laid by Maurice Schumann on 31st May 1953 and the official inauguration took place on 6th October 1955, presided over by Cardinal Feltin, archbishop of Paris.

The architects, sculptors, painters and other artists who contributed to the building of the church and its decoration are the subject of other pages of our web-site.

FROM 1955 TO THE PRESENT TIME
As the years went by, new situations and needs arose, particularly in the aftermath of war. As ever, Notre Dame de France responded to these new needs by broadening its activities. Thus the Fifties saw the birth of the ‘Centre Notre Dame de Walsingham' which organised monthly study groups, recollections for young students coming to study in England and pilgrimages from King's Lynn, through the Norfolk countryside, to the Slipper's Chapel and Our Lady of Walsingham's shrine in Walsingham.

The sixties saw the creation of the ‘Centre Charles Péguy' on a site in Greek street, from where it moved to what is now known as ‘Maison Pierre Chanel', at 16, Leicester Square. Besides catering for the needs of the numerous ‘au-pair girls' living in London and elsewhere, it organised meetings and conferences around well-known visiting personalities such as Henri de Lubac O.P., Maurice Zundel, Jacques Rivière of the newspaper ' Le Monde ', André Cruziat, a specialist in Third-World economies and working at ‘Croissance des Jeunes Nations'...

It was about that time that large numbers of Commonwealth francophones, the Mauritians, came to London. They usually met at Notre Dame de France. The ‘Association Chrétienne des Mauriciens' was created to help them to settle in England.

When the Marists left Notre Dame de France in the eighties, the running of the parish was entrusted to the Chaplaincy for French expatriates. This period saw the curtailment or even the disappearance of most activities at Notre Dame, due to the shortage of priests ( during that time and until 1992, there was only one priest, helped by a dominican priest then living in London ). The main concern of the chaplain was the running of the chaplaincy at the ‘Lycée Charles de Gaulle' at the expense of all other activities.

When the Marists returned in 1992, they were warmly received by the Francophone community. Their arrival saw a renewal of the parish life. Always alert to any new pastoral needs of their flock, the Marist fathers created the Notre Dame Refugee Centre, as well as a support service to the homeless, a listening room inside the church, a Taizé group and a variety of groups responding mainly to the many needs of the African francophones of London. Notre Dame de France takes part as well in pastoral activities in the West End alongside other local churches. On 1st June 2008 a new Marist European Province has been created. It gathers seven former provinces - now become regions. Notre Dame de France has been identified as one of the European projects which will be run by this Province.

May God bless Notre Dame de France, now and forever!

THE STORY OF THE MARIST FATHERS
To know more about the Marist Fathers or the Marist family go to:
www.maristinternational.org
www.maristes-france.org