Basilica of St Denis

A French jewel, for two reasons: It is in the Gothic style and almost all French kings have been laid to rest here. They came to the abbey of Saint-Denis to pray and take the Oriflama before going to war or the Crusades. You cannot distinguish where previous styles ended and the Gothic began. Constructed between 1137 and 1144 on the initiative of Abbot Suger of Saint Denis. We find the characteristic Gothic features (floor, vault and pointed arch) and Romanesque tradition, the combination of these and the pursuit of light and strictly geometric design are impressive and take you back to old European decorative styles. Today, people see it as a African neighbourhood rather than a royal necropolis.

This basilica in Saint Denis is a treat for the senses. It has an important place in art history as the first church that was built in the Gothic style. Although it has the title of a cathedral it is an abbey.

You can reach it by taking line 13 of the subway and after exiting, just follow the direction of the basilica. The exterior is beautiful, the tower of the cathedral, the windows, the little square in the garden, but what is really spectacular is the interior: the cloister and especially the necropolis.

All of the kings of France are buried here, since Hugh Capet. It was also included in a story by Alexandre Dumas, about the desecration that took place during the revolution.