Protestant Stronghold
In the sixteenth century, fratricidal conflicts set Protestants and Catholics against one another in this small town in the south of the Massif Central. Castres became a Protestant stronghold under the terms of the Edict of Nantes (1598). Cardinal Richelieu ordered the demolition of its fortifications, and Louis XIII subsequently resolved to restore Catholicism there. The Capuchins established a highly active monastery which remained in operation until the eighteenth century.
Religious Freedom during the Revolution
In 1791, the Capuchin monastery became municipal property; the chapel was stripped of its furnishings and used as a saltpeter store or a fodder barn.
In 1795, Protestants met either in a barn or in private homes. However, the law of 11 Prairial, Year III (30 May 1795) authorised them to request from the municipal authorities a building for use as a temple. The Capuchin chapel was offered to them: the Reformed community accepted and converted it into a church. The interior vaulting was removed and replaced by a flat ceiling.
Above the entrance door remain the insignia of the Capuchin order, Franciscan Friars Minor : two crossed arms bearing the stigmata, surmounted by a cross from which rays emanate.
Elements of the Capuchin cloister are preserved in the inner courtyard of the Hôtel Armand Guibal.
