The Saint-Denis Basilica

Picture: Costa (2015)

Restored in 2014/2015, Saint-Denis Basilica is the first fully Gothic cathedral and is also the tomb of the kings of France. A legend say that Saint Dennis, the patron of the church and of the country, had been beheaded at Montmartre and then would have run, holding his own head, to city where is today Saint-Denis. The church began to be built around 1130, being an achievement of the audacious abbot Suger, adviser of the French kings at the time.

Picture: catedral restoration board (2015)

The western façade was designed to be a monumental entrance of three portals, represented the Trinity. Modified during the Middle Ages and in the 13th century, the façade was also heavily influenced by the restorations headed by the architect Debret from 1838 to 1840.

Picture: Costa (2015)

The great height of its nave evidences the thin vertical ribs, forming the arches above, in ogiva format. The plant, as in Saint-Martin-des-Champs in Paris, has chapels arranged in circles around the altar. These and other Gothic features were passed on to the other French cathedrals built thereafter.

Picture: Costa (2015)

Immediately after the altar are the tombs of the kings of France, adorned by beautiful funerary sculptures, from Clovis I (511) to Charles X (1830). Saint-Denis is a city close to Paris, where you can easily get to the subway (Basilique Saint-Denis Station, line 13)