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Saint Denis is a patron saint of France and, according to legend, was the first bishop of Paris. A simple shrine was erected at his burial place. There Dagobert I, king of the Franks, who reigned from 628 to 637, founded the Abbey of Saint Denis, attached to a Benedictine monastery.
The church is an architectural landmark, part of which is considered to be the first major structure built in the Gothic style. Saint Denis' Gothic structure that you see now was begun in 1136Events Completion of the Saint Denis Basilica in Paris Peter Abelard writes the Historia Calamitatum detailing his relationship with Heloise Births William of Newburgh, British historian and author of the Historia rerum Anglicarum Deaths Leopold III of Au by the Abbot SugerSuger (c. 1081 January 13, 1151), French ecclesiastic, statesman and historian, was born of poor parents either in Flanders, at St Denis near Paris or at Toury in Beauce. About 1091 he entered the abbey of St Denis. Until about 1104 he trained at the prio ( 1081Events Corfu taken from Byzantine Empire by Robert Guiscard, Norman King of Southern Italy Byzantine emperor Nicephorus III is overthrown by Alexius I Comnenus, ending the Middle Byzantine period and beginning the Comnenan dynasty Alexius I helps defend A - 1155Events Frederick I Barbarossa crowned Holy Roman Emperor. Emperor Go-Shirakawa ascends to the throne of Japan. Robert of Chichester becomes Bishop of Exeter. Births November 5 Alfonso VIII of Castile Deaths Emperor Konoe of Japan 1155.), but the major construction was not completed until the end of the 13th century12th century 13th century 14th century other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. Events Fourth through eighth crusades of western European kingdoms against Islam Fall of.
The abbey is where the kings of France were buried for centuries and is therefore often referred to as the "royal necropolis of France". All but three of the monarchs of France from the 10th century9th century 10th century 11th century other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 10th century was that century which lasted from 901 to 1000. Events The beginning of the Medieval Warm Period Viking groups settle in northern France N until 1789Events January 7 First nationwide United States election January 21 The first American novel, The Power of Sympathy or the Triumph of Nature Founded in Truth is printed in Boston, Massachusetts January 23 Georgetown College becomes the first Catholic coll have their remains here. The abbey church contains some fine examples of cadaver tombA cadaver tomb (or memento mori tomb", Latin for "reminder of death") is a sarcophagus that resembles a carved stone bunk-bed with the deceased shown alive on the top level (life-sized and often kneeling in prayer) and in death on the bottom level, in thes. The effigies of many of the kings and queens are on their tombs, but during the French Revolution, these tombs were opened by workers under orders from revolutionary officials. The bodies were removed and dumped in two large pits nearby. Archaeologist Alexandre Lenoir, saved many of the monuments from the same revolutionary officials by claiming them as artworks for his Museum of French Monuments.
Napoleon Bonaparte reopened the church in 1806, but the royal remains were left in their mass-graves. Following Napoleon's first exile to Elba, the Bourbons briefly returned to power. They ordered a search for the corpses of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, which were found on January 21, 1815 and brought to St. Denis and buried in the crypt. In 1817, the mass-graves containing all the other remains were opened but it was impossible to distinguish any one from the collection of bones. As such, the remains were placed in an ossuary in St. Denis' crypt, behind two marble plates with the name of each monarch duly recorded. King Louis XVIII, on his death in 1824, was buried in the center of the crypt, near the graves of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Under the direction of architect Viollet-le-Duc, famous for his work on Notre-Dame de Paris, the monuments that were taken to the Museum of French Monuments were returned to the church. The corpse of King Louis VII, who had been buried at the Abbey at Saint-Pont and whose tomb had not been touched by the revolutionaries, was brought to St. Denis and buried in the crypt.Some of the members of the royal families of France buried in the Saint Denis Basilica are:
See also: List of other famous cemeteries, Cathedral diagram