The church was consecrated in 1646 by the future cardinal of Retz, and dedicated to Notre-Dame of Pity and Saint Elizabeth of Hungary.

The earlier parish church for the Temple neighbourhood, Saint-Marie-du-Temple, had been destroyed during the Revolution, and following the Restoration Saint Elizabeth was designated to take its place.

The sculpture in the tympanum over the portal, depicting Christ taken down from the cross, was made by the Italian sculptor Joseph-Michel-Ange Pollet (1814-1870).

The fresco in the half-dome depicts "The Glorification of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary welcomed by the angles into heaven", made by Jean Alaux (1786-1864).

They include Christ on the Cross, with the Virgin Mary and Saint John, A Tripique made in the 17th century in the style of Louis XIII.

The centrepiece of the Chapel of the Virgin is a large painting, "Elisabeth placing her crown at the foot of the image of Our Lord", by Merry-Joseph Blondel (1781-1853).

The lower level of the altar in the Virgin chapel is decorated with several notable small portraits of saints by Abel de Pujol.

The lower front of the altar is decorated with a bronze relief sculpture said to depict the death of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary.

Unlike the earlier Gothic windows, made with combinations of small pieces of coloured glass, this method allowed for more detailed pictures, with shading and perspective, which resembled paintings.

One group of windows, including a depiction of the canonisation of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, was made from paintings of Abel de Pujol (1828), with the glass created by L. Lobin of Tours.

The church as an abundance of paintings and frescoes displayed in the nave, the side corridors, the chapels, and inside the half-dome.