In the 20th century, the French spa resort Contrexéville became popular among Russian nobility. Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich, the uncle of Emperor Nicholas II, often came here for treatment. After his death, his widow, Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna, decided to build a modest single-domed church here. Later, she was buried in this place along with her sons Boris and Andrei.

Inside the church, there is a small two-tiered iconostasis. After World War II, when a new wave of Russian refugees arrived in France, the church-tomb reopened and functioned until 1973. Then the church was closed, and only since 2003 have irregular services been held again.