Saint Denis du Saint Sacrement
First Church of the Restoration

Metro: Saint Sebastien Froissant 
Arrondissement: 3eme, 68 rue de Turenne 
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The Church of Saint Denis du Saint Sacrement was the first parish church built during the Restoration of the monarchy after the French Revolution.

The present church was designed by the architect Etienne Hippolyte Godde, begun in 1826 and consecrated on April 19, 1835, but the history of the congregation goes back much further.

The Benedictines of the Blessed Sacrament took up residence in the old Hotel de Turenne on this site in 1697, having left the troubled area of Lorraine in the east of France. Lorraine was deeply involved in the Thirty Tears War of religion with the German Protestant princes and even after its end there was an uneasy peace.

The Benedictines remained here until the Revolution when their house was closed down. With the Concordat of 1801, they were restored to their chapel and the buildings. In 1823, the City of Paris decided to create a new parish and Etienne Hippolyte Godde was selected as the architect.

The style is representative of the time, but of particular interest in the church are the many paintings of the Restoration Period.

In 1838, Alexander-Denis Abel de Pujol finished the grand murals in the cupola of the choir: "The Eternal Father", and "Jesus and the Virgin Among the Angels". He also completed the lower bas-relief sculpture of "Saint Denis Preaching to the Gauls".

The other works of note are: "Our Lady of Good Help", painted by Joseph Court in 1844, and "The Virgin, the Infant Jesus and St. John", by Laurent Perret in 1838.

The most prestigious work in the church of Saint Denis du Saint Sacrement is the "Deposition of the Cross", also known as "The Pieta", painted by Eugene Delacroix, in 1843. This work is less known than the paintings he created for Saint Sulpice later in his career.

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