So infectious is R. Howard Bloch’s passion for his subject that even those unable to do the traveling required will find in Paris and Her Cathedrals an inspiring guide to these time-hallowed masterpieces of medieval culture.” —Colin Jones, author of Paris and The Great Nation

The beautiful ceiling preserved at the Cluny Museum in Paris is wonderful for church lovers. The Cluny Museumin Paris: French Medeival Art and Architecture The cathedral is renowned for its Gothic architecture, with pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and towering spires setting the stage for the evolution of European religious architecture.Animating the past with lush evocations of architectural splendour—from flying buttresses and jewel-encrusted shrines to hidden burial grounds and secret chambers—Bloch then contextualises the cathedrals within the annals of French history. Here thrilling tales of kingly intrigue—as in Saint-Chapelle, where the pious King Louis IX amassed relics, including Christ’s crown of thorns—and audacious abbots are interspersed with anecdotes about the meeting of aristocratic and everyday life, culminating in “a rich, colourful narrative that clearly but expertly explains the history and symbolism of some of the world’s most magnificent buildings” (Ross King). The altarpiece is a masterpiece of Baroque sculpture, depicting scenes from the life of St. Paul. The church also houses several important paintings, including works by renowned artists such as Charles Le Brun and Jean-Baptiste de Champaigne.

Genevieve was an ordinary woman from Nanterre who saw God and became a nun at 15. She would slowly become renowned for her piety and her visions. Painting of Sainte Genevieve on her deathbed in the Pantheon in Paris The Église Saint-Augustin (Saint-Augustin Church) is a Catholic church located in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France. Construction of the church began in 1860 and was completed in 1871. Throughout the centuries, Notre-Dame Cathedral has played a central role in French history, witnessing the most important French coronations, marriages, and significant religious events. Les Invalides was originally a complex of buildings built as a military hospital and retirement home for war veterans. In Paris and Her Cathedrals, six of the most sublime cathedrals in the penumbra of Paris—Saint-Denis, Notre-Dame, Chartres, Sainte-Chapelle, Amiens, Reims—are illumined in magnificent detail as Bloch, taking us from the High Middle Ages to the devastating fire that set Notre-Dame ablaze in 2019, traces the evolution of each in turn. Written from the premise that “seeing is enhanced by knowing,” each chapter is organized along the lines of a walk around and then through the space of the cathedral, such that the actual or virtual visitor feels the rich sweep of the church, “the essence of these architectural wonders” (Antonia Felix).The Roman temple was eventually replaced by a Church to Saint Etienne. Construction of the current cathedral dedicated to Mother Mary began in 1163 AD and thehigh altarwas consecrated on 19 May 1182. It was the golden age of cathedrals, when several other historic cathedrals were built across France. Not a cathedral or even a “church” in the traditional sense, La Sainte-Chapelle is actually a Royal Chapel,commissioned by King Louis IX (later Saint Louis) to house important relics that he acquired (including the purported crown of thorns of Christ.) Sainte Chapelle was built in the 13th century originally as a part of the Royal Residences on the Île de la Cité in Paris. This became the early burial ground for royalty including Childebert and other Merovingian kings in the history of France. King Louis VII and Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine: A prominent medieval royal couple, known for their historical significance and Eleanor’s involvement in the Second Crusade.