The church of Saint-Ambroise is located in the 11th arrondissement of Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

. It was named after its neighborhood, the quartier Saint-Ambroise.

Construction and consecration

Located at 71 Boulevard Voltaire, Saint-Ambroise was built between 1863 and 1868, shortly after the construction of the new Boulevard du Prince-Eugène, which was later renamed Boulevard Voltaire. It replaced a church called Notre-Dame de la Procession which was located close to the path of the new street at about the location of the public garden. The church was designed by architect Théodore Ballu

Théodore Ballu

Théodore Ballu was a French architect.He entered the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1835 and was the pupil of Louis-Hippolyte Lebas....

.

Saint-Ambroise was consecrated by cardinal Léon-Adolphe Amette on 7 December 1910.

Occupation

On 18 March 1996 the church was occupied by about three hundred African immigrants who demanded regularization of their immigration status. After four days the group was ordered to leave by public authorities. A similar situation arose at the église Saint-Bernard.

Garden and sculpture

In front of the church a small public garden includes a sculpture honoring sixty years of Catholic Aid

Caritas (charity)

Caritas Internationalis is a confederate of 164 Roman Catholic relief, development and social service organisations operating in over 200 countries and territories worldwide....

, donated by local residents and sculpted by G. Chance.