Notre-Dame de Lorette (26)

rue Chateaudun and rue Bourdaloue

As the population of the Porcheron hamlet increased, the archbishop of Paris, Jean-François de Gondi, ordered construction of its first church. What is today, No. 54 rue Lamartine, was the approximate site in 1645 of the church dedicated to the Virgin of Lorette and placed under the control of the Abbey of Montmartre.

The church was demolished in 1796 after having just been established as a parish in 1791. Hippolyte Lebas, a student of Percier and Fontaine, won a competition for a new design in 1822. Begun in 1823, work was finished in 1836.

Except for the four-Corinthian column portico mounted by a triangular pediment, decorated by the allegories of Faith, Hope and Charity, the church was largely inspired by the Sainte-Marie-Majeure in Rome and Marseilles.

As with Roman basilicas Notre-Dame de Lorette has no vaulted ceiling but does have a triumphal arch that separates the nave from the choir.

The latest renovation of this interior abundant in murals and its grand organ by the master organ builder, Cavaille-Coll, and took place between 1974 and 1977 -- translated from the historical marker