Part of a Series on Vincentian Heritage Places

Place de La Chapelle, Paris

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Due to the influx of vocations, in May, 1636, Louise moved to more commodious quarters with her community, the Daughters of Charity. A house at La Chapelle was chosen because of its nearness to Saint-Lazare, the priory recently given to St. Vincent for the Congregation of the Mission he had founded.

Place de la Chapelle was the site of a house inhabited from 1636 to 1641 by Louise de Marillac (1591-1660), founder with Saint Vincent de Paul of the Daughters of Charity (1633) who had their second house here, after having been grouped together… in a small dwelling on the old rue des Fossés-Saint-Victor. (Source: Wikipedia)

“In 1636, Louise de Marillac and the first Sisters settled in the village of La Chapelle, following the demolition of the first Mother House, located on Rue des Fossés Saint Victor, which had been occupied from 1633 to 1636. This Mother House served as a home for foundlings, a small school, and provided assistance to refugees from Lorraine. Thanks to research in the National Archives and the land registry of old Paris we are able to locate the first residence of the Daughters of Charity… It was with some apprehension that Louise, the Foundress, settled in this area, which seemed too far from Saint-Lazare. The poverty in this rustic dwelling was so severe that the Sisters, to feed themselves, were reduced to gleaning the few turnips left behind by the gardeners in the Plaine Saint-Denys. The misery was particularly aggravated by the misfortunes of the times. The Thirty Years’ War was raging, and Paris lived in a state of genuine anguish shared by the small community… Despite her poverty, Louise de Marillac opened her home to the destitute women and girls, refugees from Picardy and Lorraine, who thronged to her door. She dedicated herself to providing them with shelter and food. The first initiative expected of her was the creation of a charity. But wealthy families were absent from La Chapelle, which compounded the difficulty. Monsieur Vincent nevertheless encouraged her to do her best. However, the principal work of the new Mother House remained the formation of the Daughters of Charity. This was the Foundress’s great concern. For his part, Monsieur Vincent came once a week to oversee their instruction. It was also during this difficult and arduous beginning of her stay at La Chapelle that pressing needs led Louise de Marillac to become the adoptive mother of foundlings in Paris. Not a single day goes by without finding three or four hundred abandoned children in the town and the suburbs. After much hesitation, the major problem to solve is how to provide for these poor children. Seven of these abandoned children are taken in. In 1638, the Ladies’ Assembly temporarily increases the number of foundlings to twelve. To nurse these little ones, a goat is acquired, which could be seen peacefully grazing in the house’s enclosure. In 1640, the decision was made to adopt all the abandoned children, even if it meant placing some with wet nurses in the countryside. But La Chapelle was not the ideal. There were some inconveniences. Louise was suffering from headaches. Could it be the air in La Chapelle? If so, says Saint Vincent, they must leave as soon as possible. [Soon] the Daughters of Charity would leave the La Chapelle district for good.” (Source: Province Belgique-France-Suisse of the Daughters of Charity)

Today in Paris’ 18th Arrondissement, “Square Louise-de-Marillac”, marks the spot where St. Louise lived, at the corner of the present rue Marx-Dormoy (no 2) and place de la Chapelle, from 1636 to 1641. (Source: Wikipedia)

By GFreihalter — own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21331636

Above: The plaque reads “On this site stood the house where Saint Louise de Marillac, co-founder with Saint Vincent de Paul of the Daughters of Charity, lived from 1636 to 1641.”

20th century view of the site of the house of St. Louise, early home of the Daughters of Charity at the corner of rue Max Dormoy and 20, place de la Chapelle. Courtesy of https://www.fillesdelacharite-province-bfs.fr

Church of St Denis-de-la-Chapelle, Paris. Parish of the motherhouse of the Daughters of Charity from 1636 to 1641

All Vincentian Places in this Series

Red = Vincent de Paul, Blue = Frederic Ozanam, Teal = Elizabeth Seton, Yellow = Louise de Marillac

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