The abbey church of Saint-Denis stands today as much a testament to French history as to Gothic architecture. Although a day's walk from the center medieval Paris, the monastery and abbey church had strong connections with the French monarchy. Saint-Dionysius, the legendary first bishop of Paris and apostle of Gaul believed to have been buried at the site, was hailed as the patron saint of the French kings. The monastery held the monarchy's regalia from as early as the 6th century and the church became the necropolis of the French kings. Constructed over a small Constantinian chapel, the first church dated to around 475, and was itself rebuilt in successive phases and periods under the Frankish, Carolingian, and Capetian kings. The east end of the current church, begun in 1140 by Abbot Suger, combines the elements of the pointed arch with the rib vault, enabling large stained-glass windows to filter in colored light in a construction often taken to be the first expression of Gothic architecture. In attempting account for the complex circumstances that engendered the particular combination of elements distinguishing Suger's church from others in its period, the copious academic literature has raised Saint-Denis to the level of a paradigm for Gothic architecture. However, the recent scholarship tends to downplay the role of Abbot Suger in the conception of the building as well as the novelty of the forms. Only the facade and apse of Suger's vision was completed; the current nave was begun in 1231 under Abbot Eudes Clément and consecrated in 1281. The main body and upper levels of the east end dating from this campaign present a reinterpretation of Gothic forms in the use of extended mullions and a glazed triforium, among other stylistic elements associated with the beginning of the Rayonnant style.
Images for this page: Facade, Suger's east end: interior and exterior, and nave elevation