Antoine Court was born in the village of Villeneuve-de-Berg, in the province of the Vivarais. He was eight years old when the Camisard revolt was finally suppressed, and nineteen when on the 8th of March 1715 the edict of Louis XIV was published, declaring that " he had abolished entirely the exercise of the so-called reformed religion.
Antoine, taken to the secret meetings of the persecuted Calvinists, began, when only seventeen, to speak and exhort in these congregations of "thedesert. "
He came to suspect after a time that many of the so-called " inspired " persons were " dupes of their own zeal and credulity, " and decided that it was necessary to organize at once the small communities of believers into properly constituted churches.
To the execution of this vast undertaking he devoted his life.
Here elders were appointed, and the preaching of women, as well as pretended revelations, was condemned.
The village of Monoblet "thus seems entitled to the honour of having had the first organized Protestant church after the revocation of the edict of Nantes " (H. M. Baird).
But there were as yet no ordained pastors.
Pierre Corteiz was therefore sent to seek ordination.
He was ordained at Zurich, and from him Court himself received ordination.
The scene of his labours for fifteen years was Languedoc, the Vivarais, and Dauphine.
His beginnings were very small prayer-meetings in " the desert. "
Btit the work progressed under his wise direction, and he was able " to be present, in 1744, at meetings of ten thousand souls. "
In 1724 Louis XV, againassuming that there were no Protestants in France, prohibited the most secret exercise of the Reformed religion, and imposed severe penalties.
It was impossible fully to carry out this menace.
But persecution raged, especially against the pastors.
A price was set on the life of Court; and in 1730 he escaped to Lausanne.
He had the title of deputy-general of the churches, and was really the pillar of their hope.
The Seminary of Lausanne sent forth all the pastors of the Reformed Church of France till the days of the first French Empire.
He wrote, amongst other works, a Histoire des troubles des Ctoennes ou de la guerre des Camisards (1760).
