The congregation was founded by
Peter Fourier (1564-1640) who in 1597 entrusted the
Mattaincourt school to a small community of women headed by
Alix Le Clerc (1576-1622). On December 25, 1597, the young woman consecrated herself to God with four companions. The
Cardinal of Lorraine approved the institute on December 8, 1603 and authorized the nuns to settle in the
Trois-Évêchés. The congregation spread quickly and opened schools in many cities of the
Duchy of Lorraine:
Poussay,
Mattaincourt,
Saint-Mihiel, but also in the
Duchy of Bar, the
Kingdom of France and in the
Holy Roman Empire. The
papal bull of August 8, 1628 of
Pope Urban VIII authorizes the Notre-Dame congregation and recognizes in its members the solemn vow of teaching. The communities originally had a
monastic organization and each house was autonomous. At the beginning of the 20th century, a process of unification led several communities to federate in the union of Jupille (1910), then the Roman union (1932). In 1963, the two unions, which included almost all the houses, merged into a single congregation based in
Rome. The congregation was not recognized as an apostolic order until three centuries after its foundation at the time of
Vatican Council II. == See also ==