Basilique cathédrale de Saint-Denis

The Cathedral Basilica of Saint-Denis, near Paris, is the first monumental masterpiece of Gothic art.

The royal cemetery has a unique collection in Europe of over 70 carved effigies and tombs, and an impressive collection of stained glass from the XII and XIX centuries.

This extraordinary building was built on the site of an ancient Gallo-Roman cemetery, resting place of Saint-Denis, was martyred around 250. In addition to a Carolingian crypt, the remains of the building dedicated in 775 by Charlemagne, the monument also preserves the testimony of two buildings : le chevet de Suger of 1144, shows the new Gothic and partly rebuilt in the time of Saint Louis.

During the Hundred Years War and Religion, Abbey knows the decline. The building was then restored in 1806 at the request of Napoleon I. Then Louis XVIII returns to the abbey's status as a necropolis. Finally in 1966, the basilica became a cathedral, seat of the bishopric of Saint-Denis.