Basilica of Saint-Denis

About

Saint-Denis Basilica is a Gothic-style church located in the centre of the city of Saint-Denis in the French department of Seine-Saint-Denis in the Île-de-France region of France. Originally founded as an abbey, it has been a cathedral of the diocese of Saint-Denis since 1966. At its origins, the former Royal Abbey of Saint-Denis is associated with the history of the Francs.

The abbey church was called "basilica" from the Merovingian period (like many other churches). It rises on the site of a Gallo-Roman cemetery, place of burial of Saint Denis of Paris martyred around 250. The transept of the abbey church, of exceptional magnitude, was intended to accommodate royal tombs.

It is thus the royal necropolis of the kings of France since the direct robertians and capetians, even if several Merovingian kings then carolingians had chosen to rest there before them. Saint-Denis Basilica is classified as historical monuments by list in 1862. The surrounding Pierre-de-Montreuil Garden is classified as historical monuments by order of 19 August 1926.

The basilica is served 400 metres by the...