Cénac House

On 21 February 1858, Bernadette was stopped as she was leaving Vespers at Saint-Pierre Church. She was taken to the Cénac house, the residence of Commissioner Jacomet, who wished to question her.

Faced with the popular fervour Bernadette had sparked at the Grotto, the authorities were keen to bring the matter to a swift conclusion, as the interest it was generating threatened public order and security.

Over the course of eight interrogations, and despite threats of imprisonment, Bernadette consistently maintained the same account of her experience. She claimed to have seen a ‘woman dressed entirely in white with a blue sash and a yellow rose on each foot’.

The affair then took on a political dimension at a time marked by the Industrial Revolution, scientific progress and the rise of anticlericalism.

Ultimately, Bernadette won over public opinion thanks to the support of the devout Empress Eugénie. Napoleon III then sent a telegram to the prefect of Tarbes instructing him ‘not to harass Bernadette any further’; nevertheless, she remained the subject of great public curiosity until her departure for the Saint-Gildard convent in Nevers in 1866.

On 21 February 1858, Bernadette was arrested as she was leaving Vespers at St Peter’s Church. She was taken to the Cénac house, the residence of Commissioner Jacomet, who wished to question her.

Given the popular enthusiasm Bernadette aroused at the Grotto, the authorities wished to bring this matter to a swift conclusion, as the interest it generated threatened public order and safety.

Throughout eight interrogations, and despite threats of imprisonment, Bernadette consistently maintained the same account of her experience. She claimed to have seen a ‘woman dressed entirely in white, with a blue sash and a yellow rose on each foot’.

The affair then took on a political dimension at a time marked by the Industrial Revolution, scientific progress and the rise of anticlericalism.

Ultimately, Bernadette prevailed in the battle for public opinion thanks to the support of the devout Empress Eugénie. Napoleon III then sent a telegram to the prefect of Tarbes ‘telling him to leave Bernadette in peace’, though she continued to be the subject of great public curiosity until her departure for the convent of Saint-Gildard in Nevers in 1866.

On 21 February 1858, Bernadette was stopped as she was leaving Vespers at the Church of St Peter. She was taken to the Cénac house, the residence of Commissioner Jacomet, who intended to question her.

Faced with the popular enthusiasm Bernadette had stirred up at the Grotto, the authorities wished to bring the matter to a swift conclusion, as the interest it was generating threatened public order and security.

Over the course of eight interrogations, and despite threats of imprisonment, Bernadette consistently maintained the same account of her story. She claimed to have seen a ‘woman dressed entirely in white with a blue sash and a yellow rose on each foot’.

The affair thus took on a political dimension at a time marked by the Industrial Revolution, scientific progress and the rise of anticlericalism.

In the end, Bernadette won the battle for public opinion thanks to the support of the devout Empress Eugénie. Napoleon III then sent a telegram to the prefect of Tarbes instructing him ‘not to bother Bernadette any further’; nevertheless, she remained the subject of great public curiosity until her transfer to the convent of Saint-Gildard in Nevers in 1866.

On 21 February 1858, Bernadette was stopped after Vespers at the Church of Saint-Pierre. She was taken to the Cénac house, the residence of Commissioner Jacomet, who wished to question her.

Given the enthusiasm Bernadette had sparked amongst the people at the grotto, the authorities wanted to bring the matter to a swift conclusion, as the resulting interest was threatening public order and safety.

Over the course of eight interrogations, and despite the threat of imprisonment, Bernadette consistently stuck to the same account of her experience. She claimed to have seen a ‘woman dressed entirely in white, with a blue sash and a yellow rose on each foot’.

The affair subsequently took on a political dimension at a time characterised by the Industrial Revolution, scientific progress and the rise of anti-clericalism.

Ultimately, thanks to the support of the devout Empress Eugénie, Bernadette won the battle for public opinion. Napoleon III subsequently telegraphed the Prefect of Tarbes, instructing him “to stop harassing Bernadette”, yet she remained the subject of great public curiosity until she entered the Saint-Gildard convent in Nevers in 1866.

On 21 February 1858, Bernadette was stopped as she was leaving Vespers at St Peter’s Church. She was taken to the Cénac house, the residence of Commissioner Jacomet, who wished to question her.

Given Bernadette’s great popularity at the grotto, the authorities wanted to deal with this matter swiftly, as the interest she was generating was jeopardising public order and safety.

During eight interrogations, and despite threats of imprisonment, Bernadette remained steadfast in her account. She claimed to have ‘seen a woman dressed entirely in white, with a blue sash and a yellow rose on each foot’.

The case subsequently took on a political dimension at a time characterised by the Industrial Revolution, scientific progress and the rise of anti-clericalism.

Ultimately, Bernadette wins the battle for public opinion thanks to the support of the devout Empress Eugénie. Napoleon III then telegraphed the prefect of Tarbes instructing him “not to bother Bernadette any longer”, but she nevertheless remained the subject of great public curiosity until her departure for the convent of Saint-Gildard in Nevers in 1866.

On 21 February 1858, Bernadette was detained after Vespers at St Peter’s Church. She was taken to the Cénac house, where Commissioner Jacomet was staying; he wished to question her.

Faced with the widespread enthusiasm that Bernadette aroused at the Grotto, the authorities were keen to bring the matter to a swift conclusion, as the interest in her was threatening public order and safety.

During the course of eight interrogations, despite the threat of imprisonment, Bernadette consistently maintained the same account of her experience. She claimed to have seen “a woman dressed entirely in white, with a blue sash and a yellow rose on each foot”.

The case took on a political dimension at a time marked by the Industrial Revolution, scientific progress and growing anti-clericalism.

Ultimately, Bernadette won the battle for public opinion thanks to the support of the devout Empress Eugénie. Napoleon III then sent a telegram to the prefect of Tarbes instructing him “not to harass Bernadette any further”; she nevertheless remained the subject of immense public curiosity until her departure for the convent of Saint-Gildard in Nevers in 1866.