Notre-Dame-des-Armées Church, Calais
In 1882, Father Debras was already thinking of building a sanctuary dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Seeing the deplorable state of the district known as "Le Cailloux", he intended to echo the Marian devotion of Abbé G. Bellanger (1861-1902) in this somewhat isolated area to the north of the city, while paying homage to the Patroness of Soldiers. Having never seen his work finished, it was Abbé Debout who took over the work in 1906. The new parish was given a vicar, Peugnet, who launched the bulletin "Notre-Dame des Armées" and a subscription in order to collect funds to continue the work on the church.
About this building
In 1906, on the initiative of Father Debout, a presbytery and a temporary chapel were built on land donated by Mrs. Damann-Rault. Having done this, the district of "Les Cailloux" was erected as an autonomous parish in December 1913 and was entrusted to a vicar, Father Peugnet, vicar of the Sacred Heart. The first stone was blessed on May 15, 1921 by Monseigneur Debout on a parcel of land offered again by Mrs. Damann. The bell tower was inaugurated on November 11, 1928 with a bell christened Marie-Joseph-Thérèse.
