[2] The congregation was founded at the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur in Montmartre, Paris, in September 1933 by five seminarians from Issy-les-Moulineaux, first taking the name of Little Brothers of Solitude; the five were: René Voillaume, Marcel Bouchet, Marc Gerin, Guy Champenois and Georges Gorree.

The first years were marked by tracing the intuitions of Foucauld, settling and adapting his original 'Directory' or Rules, and establishing novitiates for the first generation of their religious congregation.

[9] Each member of the congregation professes the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, and undergoes a period of formation lasting several years including a postulancy which is followed by a novitiate.

Afterwards, there are some years of formal study which include Christology, Sacred Scripture, Theology, Philosophy, Christian Spirituality amongst other subjects - all ongoing within a fraternal setting of daily work.

[10] The Little Brothers of Jesus were featured in the fourth episode of the BBC's documentary series The Long Search titled 'Rome, Leeds and the Desert'.