Les temples protestants « monuments historiques » en Poitou-Charentes

Abstract

The examination of the lists of protected historic monuments in the Poitou-Charentes region underlined the poor representation in these lists of Protestant temples. This fact incited the historic monuments service of the region to put forward a more representative selection of the 130 Protestant temples to be found in the region, 58 in the Charente-Maritime department, 40 in the Deux-Sèvres, 24 in Charente and 8 in the Vienne. The criteria adopted to analyse these temples included their architectural qualities, their place in history, their use by the Protestant faiths, their integration into their urban environment, the presence of interesting church furnishings and the possible role of the temple as a place of memory. The history and the architecture of these temples during the 19th and 20th centuries are to be understood in the particular and animated context of the arrival of Protestantism in the region.

Keywords

• Poitou-Saintonge Protestant Association
• Pastor Picanon
• Rousseau family
• Protestant temples in the Poitou-Charentes region
• Protestant temples protected as historic monuments
• Protected Protestant temples