13

Under the Ancien Régime, a Protestant community organized itself in Asnières, a small village near the town of Bourges. In this village, most people devoted themselves to growing vineyards. Following the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, Protestants resisted for several reasons, including their specific and independent way of life, which was less marked by religious persecution in that area, an insufficient number of Catholic priests, and a level of emigration lower than elsewhere. From a strictly professional point of view, the two communities succeeded in coexisting despite some tensions that can be explained mainly by the greater wealth of the Huguenot families. Moreover, both communities coexisted in religious terms also. While Calvinist worship continued, Protestants accepted Catholic baptism and under special circumstances, church weddings also. However, they steadfastly maintained the refusal to conform when it came to behavior and beliefs concerning death. The Protestant wine growers of Asnières thus provide an example (among others) of a Reformed rural community that was still resisting well into the 18th century.