Zehnacker

Zehnacker is a small Alsatian village with a current population of 219. Its history dates back to the year 739, the date of its first written mention. In the 12th century, it belonged to the Marmoutier Abbey before becoming, in 1513, a possession of the city of Strasbourg until the French Revolution. Nicknamed the village of the "ten fields" or the "tithe field," Zehnacker joined the rural territories of Strasbourg in 1503, which led to the early adoption of the Reformation by its inhabitants at the beginning of the 16th century. This made it a Protestant enclave amid predominantly Catholic villages. The presbytery, built in 1724 near the church, still bears witness to this era. Protestants and Catholics then shared the same place of worship: a simultaneum, established in 1686, operated until the construction of a new church in 1852. The Church of Our Lady, located in the village's central square, stands on the site of a basilica dating from the 8th century, attesting to the site's ancient occupation.