In 1819, under the leadership of Louis Saulet (1796-1862), who had just been ordained a priest of the Diocese of Bayeux, a small group of priests and seminarians in the diocese saw the great challenge still existing in re-establishing the Catholic faith to a population devastated by the destruction of Church institutions during the French Revolution and the social disruption left in the wake of the Napoleonic era.
They committed themselves to serve the diocese as missionaries to the local populace, working to revive their practice of the Catholic faith and deepen it through spiritual retreats.
[1] In July 1904, the French government broke off relations with the Holy See, abrogating the nation's concordat with the Catholic Church.
As a consequence of the resulting Law of Separation, the government banned the operation of all religious orders in the country and seized their properties.
[1] Relations between France and the Church were repaired in 1921, at which time many surviving members of French religious communities who had lived in exile returned to their homeland.