Jean-Louis Lecointe et les propositions pour rétablir le protestantisme (1766-68)

In 1766 the French government, acutely aware of problems caused by anti-Protestant legislation (in particular the worrying spread of illegal marriages and baptisms at potentially rebellious assemblées du désert), commissioned a secret report from the Conseiller d'État Gilbert de Voisins. The documents on which he based his recommendations are of great interest. Two of them emanated from a Protestant representative, Jean-Louis Lecointe, close to the Prince de Conti. Lecointe shows considerable diplomacy, but also firmness. While prepared to condemn illegal assemblies, to accept the pre-eminence of the Catholic Church, and even the maintenance of tithes, he demands the restoration of Protestant public worship, the presence in France of pastors, and even the creation of Protestant universities to train them. These documents thus show that certain Huguenot circles were far from being prepared to accept almost any settlement with the government, as has sometimes been suggested.Gargett Graham. Jean-Louis Lecointe et les propositions pour rétablir le protestantisme (1766-68). In: Dix-huitième Siècle, n°34, 2002. Christianisme et Lumières, sous la direction de Sylviane Albertan-Coppola et Antony McKenna. pp. 201-212