In April 1919, the demolition of the fortifications surrounding Paris was decided upon, particularly along the boundary between the Vaugirard district and the commune of Vanves. Following the disappearance of these old defensive walls, the Superior Council for Urban Planning launched, in 1932, a development plan for the Paris region that included the construction of 40,000 housing units. In the 1920s, Abbé Mortier, parish priest of the Chapel of Saint Francis of Assisi in Vanves, regularly visited families living in this area of the former fortifications, also known as “the Zone.” However, the chapel soon proved too small. Cardinal Verdier therefore decided, through the *Chantiers du Cardinal*, to build a Franciscan-style church similar to that in Vanves, based on designs by Léon Azéma, the bold and sometimes controversial architect of the Palais de Chaillot. The foundation stone of the new parish, dedicated to Saint Anthony of Padua, a disciple of Saint Francis, was laid on 11 June 1933 (the 53rd *Chantier*), at the Porte de Plaisance. The church was consecrated on 29 September 1935. Its interior follows a basilican plan. The choir is dominated by a fresco by the painter Jean Bernard, inaugurated on 5 June 1948. The central motif, a vision surrounded by a halo of light, depicts the dying Christ. The lower section bears a prayer to Saint Anthony. At the entrance to the choir, Saint Francis displaying the stigmata and Saint Joseph presenting the Christ Child invite the faithful to share in Christ’s sacrifice. Near the doors, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and Saint Anthony recall the missionary vocation of every Christian. Externally, a 46-metre spire, flanked at the four cardinal points by statues of Saint Francis and Saint Clare, Saint Louis and Saint Elizabeth, rises above the building. Three bells were blessed on 27 November 1938: Antoinette- Roberte (650 kg), sounding F; Marie-Thérèse (475 kg), sounding G; and Claudine (325 kg), sounding A. Source