History Visit Architecture Information History Visit Architecture Information History Visit Architecture Information ▲ ▲ ▲ English Chapel architecture Glossary Expiatory The architect Cenotaph: empty tomb or monument erected as a memorial. Chapel The Expiatory Chapel was built by Pierre Duchess of Angoulême (1778-1851): the eldest François Léonard Fontaine (1762-1853) at daughter of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. the request of Louis XVIII, who made him his Georges Eugène Haussmann (1809-1891): director A commemorative monument official architect. He was already famous for of the major renovation work in Paris during his work carried out in collaboration with the the Second Empire. A place of prayer architect Percier for Napoleon. Here Fontaine Madeleine cemetery: opened in 1721, during the reign of Terror, it was the burial place of those has singlehandedly devised a building and 2019. Imprimé en France, Traducteo. In 1814, at the end of the Revolution and during integrated it into a complex architectural executed between 1792 and 1794, such as the restoration of the monarchy, King Louis XVIII project. Fontaine’s neoclassical style represents Charlotte Corday and the Gironde deputies. traduction (1814-1824)** was eager to revive the memory much more than multiple borrowings from Metope: the interval, sometimes sculpted, of the royal family. He had the remains of his Ancient Rome, the Middle Ages and the separating two triglyphs* on a Doric frieze. brother Louis XVI : the triangle between the great arches Renaissance: it constitutes a unique work. Pendant Mass in the (1774-1792) and that support a dome forming a transition from Marie-Hélène Forestier. Expiatory Marie-Antoinette the square layout to a round one. Chapel, by A building with many Lancelot transferred to Saint different influences Restoration (1814-1830): the restoration of the réalisation Turpin de Denis Basilica. monarchy after the Revolution. Crissé, Paris, He then had this Carnavalet The chapel is laid out both centrally, like the Translation: the removal of sacred objects museum expiatory chapel Pantheon in Rome, and along an axis. Its (ashes, relics, etc.) from one place to another. Anders. Plein Sens, built on the site of the former Madeleine dramatic setting suggests Baroque inspiration. Triglyph: an ornament composed of three cemetery*, on the very spot were the king and The Campo Santo recalls the one in Pisa, one channels engraved into the stone. queen had been buried after their execution in of the models of the Italian Renaissance. 1793. The first stone was laid on January 21, The decor on the facade of the chapel makes Practical information conception graphique 1815, the anniversary date of the death of Louis reference to the repertoire of ancient XVI. The building was completed in 1826 architecture: the entablature, the horizontal part Average length of visit: 30 minutes. during the reign of Charles X (1824-1830). supported by the columns, is composed of a Go-as-you-please tour. pour plaire. Tout smooth architrave from bottom to top: a frieze A controversial monument Bookshop-Giftshop illustration formed by alternating triglyphs* and metopes* The guide to this monument is available in the ‘Itinéraires’ collection and a cornice. The presence of a cross on the in the bookshop-giftshop. At the end of the Restoration*, the chapel, pediment of this Christian monument is very which was perceived as a hangover from the Centre des monuments nationaux discreet. Fontaine also called on the French Chapelle expiatoire Ancien Regime, became a subject of political tradition of stone-dressing for the vaults and 29 rue Pasquier debate, arousing passionate feelings. Partly 75008 Paris roofs of the side galleries and successfully tél. 01 42 65 35 80 restored during the Second Empire, it later created a meaningful but discreet architecture, fax 01 44 07 32 23 . / Roger-Viollet © Musée Carnavalet came under threat several times, but moves to reminding visitors of the twin vocations demolish it remained unsuccessful. The chapel, www.monuments-nationaux.fr of the chapel: prayer and commemoration. crédits photos the work of the architect Fontaine, was listed as a historic monument in 1914. *Explanations overleaf. *Explanations overleaf. **Dates given refer to the beginning and end of his reign. History Visit Architecture Information ▲ 6 White marble statues represent Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. The first group, sculpted by 4 Joseph Bosio, shows the king supported by an angel. Louis XVI’s will is engraved on the black 6 marble plaque on the pedestal. Opposite him, the work of Jean-Pierre Cortot represents the queen, 1 2 3 5 kneeling before Religion. Her last letter written to 7 Madame Elisabeth, the king’s sister, is engraved in 6 the marble. These works, donated by the Duchess 4 of Angoulême* were installed after the fall of the Bourbons, in 1834-1835: as the tribute paid to the 9 8 memory of the royal couple was no longer the duty N of the nation, it became a private matter. 7 The lower chapel is accessible via the stairs at the back of the side chapels. The black marble Entrance pavilion 4 Rows of cenotaphs* on each side mark altar in the form of an ancient tomb marks the the boundaries of the former cemetery and place where the king’s body was exhumed. The 1 The pavilion is an imposing way of marking the commemorate the Swiss guards who lost their ossuaries are embedded in the walls, where first station on a memorial route towards the lives on August 10, 1792 during the taking of the remains of those buried in the Madeleine centre of the monument: the chapel cannot be fully the Tuileries and the deposition of the king. On Cemetery reside, including many who were sent seen from the entrance. This arrangement used to top of each memorial sits a winged hourglass, to the guillotine on Place de la Révolution. be emphasised by an avenue of cypress trees which represents the fleetness of life. The poppy 8 In the sacristy, a confessional with its red velvet leading head décor symbolises eternal life while the cypress fold-up seat is fitted into a cupboard. to the stone steps. The facade, a bare wall with and oak branches symbolise mourning. 9 The side galleries have nine arches. Set lower a monumental door, is topped by a replica of a than the inner courtyard, they protect the wall- colossal sarcophagus whose pediment stands out 5 The chapel mounted gravestones. against the sky. The inscription on the building, engraved on a broad slab, is the dedication by Once you cross the peristyle, the inside The surrounding area Louis XVIII, recalling his desire to honour the architectural effects can be seen thanks to the light 2 burial place of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. from the roof openings at the top of each of the The chapel, which is now adjoined by the ‘square A flight of steps leads from the vestibule to the four vaults. The square frames in the dome contrast Louis XVI’, built in 1862 during the Haussmann* courtyard. Each of the inner walls is decorated with the octagonal frames in the secondary vaults. works, used to be set in a small romantic garden. with an arch made up of festoons and crowns The slabwork design echoes the shape of the dome. Two rows of cypresses, meeting at the entrance, with the entwined monograms of Louis XVI The pendants* in the main dome portray four formed a long viewpoint all the way to the current and Marie-Antoinette. The dark, groin-vaulted religious themes in a highly symmetrical Rue de l’Arcade. passageway opens out into a much brighter composition: the Passion of Christ, the Eucharist, space in the inner garden of the chapel. the Trinity and the Tables of the Law. The bas-reliefs are by François-Antoine Gérard, The inner garden as is the tympanum on the great arch close to the entrance, depicting the translation* of 3 The Campo Santo is a raised garden composed the remains of the royal couple to Saint-Denis. of sifted earth from the former cemetery. *Explanations overleaf..