The Colloquy of Poissy

This painting by Joseph-Nicolas Robert-Fleury, executed in 1840, depicts the Colloquy of Poissy, held from 9 September to 14 October 1561 at the Priory of Saint-Louis in Poissy on the initiative of Catherine de' Medici. The scene brings together Catholic theologians, led by the Cardinal of Lorraine, and the reformed delegation led by Théodore de Bèze, gathered in an attempt at dialogue over the nature of the Eucharist that ultimately failed, as no compromise could be reached between the two confessions. Painted nearly three centuries after the events, this nineteenth-century work reflects its era's taste for grand history painting, restoring the solemn scale of this last attempt at theological reconciliation before the kingdom descended into the Wars of Religion.