Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Church, Paris
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Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Church in Paris, in the 10ᵉ arrondissement, was built between 1824 and 1844 in a Neoclassical style on the site of the former Saint-Lazare priory (where Saint Vincent de Paul founded the Lazarists) and the Saint-Lazare prison.
Architect Jean-Baptiste Lepère began the project; after delays (including from the Revolution of 1830) it was largely completed under Jacques Ignace Hittorff, who added twin towers, a grand portico with twelve Ionic columns, and ramps for carriages.
Inside the church, between the two levels of columns in the nave, is a painted frieze (1848-53) by Hippolyte Flandrin showing 160 male and female saints advancing toward the sanctuary. The apse’s Virgin Chapel was later decorated (1885-89) by William-Adolphe Bouguereau, and the Calvary on the main altar was by François Rude.
The church is a major 19ᵗʰ-century Neoclassical work with strong religious and social roots (linked to Saint Vincent de Paul and service to the poor), whose interior decoration emphasizes a large community of saints, uniting art, piety, and architectural grandeur.
Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Church
Square Cavaillé-Coll
75010 Paris, France
