Abbey of Saint-Denis: history, description, photo

The abbey of Saint-Denis is most often not included in the standard excursion tourism program. This is due to the fact that it is located in a very unfavorable suburb of Paris. But this place is of great historical value, it is definitely worth a visit.

Legend of the creation of the abbey

The origin of the name Saint-Denis is associated with the legend of Dionysius - the first bishop of Paris and the patron saint of France. As the story goes, he was sent to these regions by the Panthythic for the conversion of the Gentile pagans into the Christian faith. He was executed in Montmartre under the reign of King Valerian: they cut off his head. However, the body of St. Dionysius came to his head, took it in his hands and walked another six or seven kilometers to the north-east. After that, it fell next to a small settlement, which was later named after him: Saint-Denis. This story happened in the distant 258 AD. Until now, on the icons of St. Dionysius is depicted holding his head in his hands.

On the site of the burial of Dionysius of Paris, more precisely even on the grave itself, in 475 the church of the Saint Denis monastery was built with the blessing of Saint Genevieve. In those days there was a Gallo-Roman cemetery here. And in the 7th century, the order of King Dagobera the First around was erected abbey. The ruler himself wished to be buried here. In the abbey were buried all the monarchs of France: kings and queens, princesses and princes. Information on the number of burials of the highest individuals in different sources differ, because not all burials have been preserved. Many graves were destroyed.

Gothic style takes its origin here

The church of St. Dionysios was reconstructed many times: in the seventh century when the monastery was created, under the rule of Pepin the Short. In the XII century, the abbey became already very influential and powerful in France. Therefore, it was decided to expand and build new buildings. This large-scale reconstruction began to be carried out by the abbot Sugeri, an educated and outstanding religious figure of his generation, a traveler. He was appreciated, several French kings listened to him at once (for example, Louis the Fourth and Louis the Seventh).

The idea of reconstruction was to reflect the growing weight of France and its culture in Europe, and indeed throughout the world. Construction lasted more than a dozen years. The abbot wanted to preserve the original appearance. So, as a result of a mixture of architectural traditions and trends, a Gothic style arose : an alloy of Burgundian and Romanesque styles. And the first building erected in Gothic, was the church of the abbey of Saint-Denis.

Sugeri-architect owns the creation of tall stained-glass windows with images of stories from the Bible, a "stained glass rose" above the entrance, which became the decorations of the abbey. The church of Saint-Denis continued to be restored after the death of the abbot of Sugeria. In the following centuries, it was constantly changed, so up to now the decoration of those centuries has only partially reached.

Tomb of French Kings

In the XIII century, Louis IX ordered the transfer of the burials of all monarchs ruling before him to the Abbey. The church also served as the tomb of the kings of France.

Through the tombs of different times, one can see how the funeral art has changed and developed in different centuries. Some of the plates and monuments are decorated with statues-figures of sleeping monarchs (this is characteristic of the twelfth century), in the Renaissance the gravestones were decorated with compositions already with the hope of resurrection.

The abbey of Saint-Denis in the days of the revolution in France

The Hundred Years War, the Huguenot Wars, caused considerable damage to the architecture of the abbey, but the tombs suffered mostly during the Great French Revolution. The Ashes of the Autocrats were dumped in a ditch and buried, a large number of artworks stored on the territory were exported or lost.

It is said that the revolutionaries exposed the body of King Louis IV for public inspection. For a while, anyone could come and gaze at the remains. Some bodies were torn to pieces, spaced out by necrophilia and even sold.

This black page of the history of the abbey of Saint-Denis almost ended. The cathedral was to be demolished by the decree of the National Assembly, but at the last moment it was canceled.

In 1814, the relics of the kings who were dumped in the "mass graves" were dug up, collected in the crypt into the asuricum. And in 1869, and the very basilica of the abbey of Saint-Denis was restored by the wonderful French architect Viole-le-Duc, who restored not one great monument. He worked, for example, over the cathedral of Notre-Dame, Mont-Saint-Michel and others. As early as the 17th century, Saint Denis once again began to function as a burial vault for the crown.

Ceremony of the burial of the king

In the XVII century, according to the theory of French lawyers, the king must be immortal. In every way, this was emphasized with the help of a large number of burial rituals. The autocrat had a dual essence: the man and the anointed of God. For example, the funeral of King Henry the Fourth lasted forty days. The interior of the monarch was removed after death and buried in the abbey of Saint-Denis separately and without ceremony. The heart was cleaned, insisted on alcohol and folded, rubbed herbs into a tissue bag, then into a lead box, which was already placed in a silver casket. The hearts of the monarchs were kept in different places. They were given special importance, since it was with their heart that they were rooting for France. The body was embalmed, buried separately. Also a stuffed king was made from straw, however, after the French Revolution, none of them survived. Scarecrow Henry Four mimicked by special rituals the life of a living king for 10 whole days.

In Saint-Denis, all the royal regalia accompanied the embalmed body to the very last moment: the utterance of the sign phrase of the passage of the throne into new hands.

The King is dead ... Long live the King!

After this phrase, the regalia of the king as soon as possible followed in Reims for the coronation.

The Meaning of Saint-Denis

Since the XI-XII centuries, the abbey had a lot of weight in France: here not only were monarchs buried, but also heirs were trained, here the queens were crowned. The monastery of Saint-Denis conducted enlightenment activity in the Middle Ages, the monks were engaged in charity: here were a hospital, a nursing home and a shelter.

The basilica of the abbey also has architectural significance: it is the source of the development of the Gothic style, here stained glass art began.

The necropolis of Saint-Denis reflects the development of the funerary ceremonies of France and is a unique monument with 51 tombstones.

In 2004, the heart of Louis XVII, the son of Marie Antoinette, was buried here, although he did not rule, but was recognized by the king by many European countries and in the USA.

How to get to the abbey

The thirteenth line of the Paris metro will lead you to the basilica . The stop is called Basilique St Denis towards the outskirts station.

You can also use a high-speed train (in Paris it is abbreviated RER), line D, the station is called: Saint Denis.

Operating mode Basics

You can get to the prehistoric part of the church completely free of charge. From here you can see the graves through the grate. Basilica is open for visits almost every day, except in cases where funeral services or weddings are held. The entrance to the necropolis is paid, it is on the right side of the cathedral of Saint-Denis. Photos inside are forbidden.

No events in the history of France were able to completely destroy this funeral of the great monarchs, a monument of French culture, a witness of a change of times and cultures. The visitor will undoubtedly be impressed by the gothic vaults of the cathedral, the virtuoso stained glass windows and the gravestones that differ greatly in style from the gloomy medieval to the inspiring hope of the resurrection and life of the eternal Renaissance monuments.