The Assumptionists (more properly called Augustinians of the Assumption)were founded by Emmanuel d'Alzon, in Nimes, France, in 1845. Nîmes is a city and commune of southern France, préfecture (capital) of the Gard département. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

The early Assumptionists saw re-Christianizing Europe after the devastation of the French Revolution and fighting the enemies of the Catholic Church as their chief mission. At first they established schools and later inaugurated a press for this purpose. The most famous of their publications was La Croix, which enjoyed great popularity in France during the last decades of the 19th century. However, many thought the Assumptionists were using this daily newspaper to work toward the overthrow of the Republic in favor of a monarchy. At the end of the 19th century liberals also accused the Assumptionists of printing articles of a virulently anti-semitic nature in La Croix. The order was surpressed by the French government in 1900. From 1863 on, at the request of Pius IX, they were heavily involved in Eastern Europe (Bulgaria, Turkey, Romania, Greece, and Russia). This involvement led to their eventual ministry in ecumenical dialogue. The name Catholic Church can mean a visible organization that refers to itself as Catholic, or the invisible Christian Church, viz. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...

By 1900 the order had spread to several other countries, including Italy, Belgium, Great Britain, Spain and the United States, and many French Assumptionists sought refuge in the educational institutions the order had established in those countries. Others became missionaries in Africa and Latin America. A satellite composite image of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia. ...

The Assumptionists form a larger Assumption family with several women's congregations which they founded or with whom they share close ties including the Religious of the Assumption, the Little Sisters of the Assumption, the Oblates of the Assumption, and the Orantes of the Assumption.

Today, there are approximately 860 Assumptionists working in 28 countries around the world. They continue to be involved in education, the media, shrines and pilgrimages, ecumenical dialogue, and the missions. In recent years they have established missions in the Far East (Korea, the Philippines, and Vietnam).