The Shocking History of Saint Denis Basilica, Episode 381

In this episode of the podcast, Elyse Rivin takes us on a visit to the Saint Denis Basilica.

• We'll hear about Abbé Suger who wrote about how light and color brings you to a sense of eternity and of heaven.
• We'll also hear about the shocking things Revolutionaries did to Saint Denis and to most of the bodies who were buried there.
• How Napoleon Bonaparte rebuilt Saint Denis.
• The restoration work by Violet le Duc.
• Why Annie and Elyse don't understand the vindictiveness of the French Revolution

Links mentioned in the Saint Denis episode

Montjoire Saint Denis from Les Visiteurs

Le Bon Roi Dagobert

Table of Contents for this Episode

• [00:01:20] Review of Annie’s VoiceMap tours
• [00:03:24] Annie and Elyse talk about Saint Denis Cathedral/Basilica
• [00:04:43] Saint Denis Basilica is not in a great neighborhood
• [00:05:55] Saint Denis Basilica or Cathedral?
• [00:07:11] Saint Denis Basilica, a church with ancient origins
• [00:07:39] Les Visiteurs: Montjoire Saint Denis !
• [00:08:10] A brief history of Saint Denis, the man
• [00:09:19] The myth of Saint Denis
• [00:11:25] Early rulers of France
• [00:13:08] Le bon Roi Dagobert a mis sa culotte à l’envers
• [00:14:22] Dynasties of French Kings
• [00:16:25] The original church of Saint Denis is sacked by the Vikings
• [00:17:27] Year 1000, between Romanesque and Gothic styles
• [00:18:13] Abbé Suger
• [00:19:11] Abbé Suger and gothic architeture: more glass
• [00:20:00] A sense of eternity and of the Spirit of God
• [00:22:08] The construction of Notre Dame began right after Saint Denis was finished
• [00:22:47] Making room for more Kings and Queens
• [00:24:33] The glorious days of Saint Denis
• [00:25:49] Louis XIV removes some funding from Saint Denis
• [00:27:17] The quasi destruction of Saint Denis at the French Revolution
• [00:28:41] Grave dessecration
• [00:30:53] Napoleon Bonaparte rebuilds Saint Denis
• [00:32:15] Only five of the windows are original
• [00:33:08] Recovering the bones and putting them back into Saint Denis
• [00:35:08] Lack of funds at Saint Denis today
• [00:35:54] Scattered stained glass windows
• [00:37:28] Violet le Duc renovation
• [00:38:10] Discovering new graves from the 500s under Saint Denis
• [00:38:35] Queen Arégonde wife of Clotaire
• [00:41:18] Annie’s impression of Saint Denis
• [00:42:59] French dynasties at Saint Denis
• [00:45:27] It’s hard to understand why Revolutionaries behaved the way they did
• [00:48:36] We recommend Saint Denis for people who’ve visited Paris several times
• [00:50:01] Thank you Patrons and Donors!
• [00:51:10] Annie’s Itinerary Planning Service
• [00:51:42] This week in French news
• [00:54:14] Archeological find under Notre Dame
• [00:54:59] The remains of the Jubé at Notre Dame
• [00:56:08] How French elections work in a nutshell

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Category: French History