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During the reign of Napoleon III in the 1850s and 60s Paris experienced a dramatic transformation under the direction of Georges-Eugène Haussmann. Haussmann cut many boulevards through the crowded, medieval city placing prominent public buildings at the boulevard ends to provide impressive vistas. The boulevard Malesherbes was laid out cutting northwest from La Madeleine. Saint-Augustin was built to provide a counterpoint to the famous columns of La Madeleine at the other end of the boulevard. The chosen site, an odd-shaped lot at the intersection of four streets, and the need for a dome of 61 metres to be visible from the Arc de Triomphe, dictated unusual proportions for the building.
The church was designed by architect Victor Baltard who also famously designed Les Halles markets. Saint-Augustin was built between 1860 and 1868 in an eclectic style combining Tuscan Gothic and Romanesque elements. The structure was one of the first sizable buildings in Paris constructed around a metal frame. Baltard's use of iron in Saint-Augustin's structure was praised for its inventiveness.
The metal structure, made into a decorative feature, is readily apparent in the interior of the church and its lofty dome, while the masonry exterior combines an eclectic mix of Byzantine, Gothic, and Baroque elements. To resolve the difficulties of the wedge-shaped site, bordered by two busy streets, Baltard placed the entrance at the narrow end and included a series of chapels that increase in depth as they approach the choir.
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