The ''Chapelle expiatoire'' (, "Expiatory Chapel") is a Roman Catholic

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

located in the

8th arrondissement of Paris The 8th arrondissement of Paris (''VIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, the arrondissement is colloquially referred to as ''le huitième'' (). The ar ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. The chapel was constructed by

Louis XVIII Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. Before his reign, he spent 23 y ...

on the grounds where King

Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...

and Queen

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last List of French royal consorts, queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the ...

had been buried after they had been guillotined, and it is dedicated to them as an

expiation Atonement, atoning, or making amends is the concept of a person taking action to correct previous wrongdoing on their part, either through direct action to undo the consequences of that act, equivalent action to do good for others, or some other ...

for that act. The remains of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette are not in the chapel; they are in the

Basilica of Saint-Denis The Basilica of Saint-Denis (, now formally known as the ) is a large former medieval abbey church and present cathedral in the commune of Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris. The building is of singular importance historically and archite ...

, near Paris, with other French monarchs. A commemorative mass is celebrated in the chapel every year on the Sunday closest to 21 January, the anniversary of the death of Louis XVI. The closest métro station is Saint-Augustin Metro-M

History

] The chapel was designed in 1816 by the French Neoclassical architecture, Neo-Classical architect Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine, who, with his partner

Charles Percier Charles Percier (; 22 August 1764 – 5 September 1838) was a neoclassical French architect, interior decorator and designer, who worked in a close partnership with Pierre François Léonard Fontaine, originally his friend from student days. Fo ...

, was among

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

's favourite architects. Fontaine's assistant Louis-Hippolyte Lebas oversaw the construction. The chapel was constructed on the grounds of the former Madeleine Cemetery, where King

and Queen

had been buried after they had been guillotined. King

shared the 3 million livres expense of building the chapel with the Duchess of Angoulême. Construction took ten years. The chapel was inaugurated in 1826 in the presence of King

Charles X Charles X may refer to: * Charles X of France (1757–1836) * Charles X Gustav (1622–1660), King of Sweden * Charles, Cardinal de Bourbon (1523–1590), recognized as Charles X of France but renounced the royal title See also * * King Charle ...

Later history

In 1862, the cypresses which surrounded the chapel were cut down, and a public park (''Square Louis XVI'') was created around the complex. In May 1871 the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (, ) was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris on 18 March 1871 and controlled parts of the city until 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard (France), Nation ...

demanded that the Chapel be torn down, but the Commune was ended before this could be done. The chapel was formally listed as an historic monument in 1914. It was severely damaged by storm in 2009.

Exterior

The chapel and its surroundings were designed to creat a solemn promenade for the visitor. The ''Chapelle expiatoire'' stands on a slight rise, while A building on Rue Pasquier is the entrance. The pathway from entrance to the chapel takes the visitor through a enclosed cloister-like courtyard lined with symbolic tombs, monuments to the Swiss Guards who were killed defending the King. The facade of the chapel has a peristyle in the classical form, with Doric columns, an etablement with triglyphs and a fronton with sculpture of adoring angels. File:Rangée de tombes symboliques.jpg, Symbolic tombs of the Swiss guards in the entry garden File:Chapelle Expiatoire @ Square Louis XVI @ Paris (33517705644).jpg, The facade

Interior

The ''Chapelle expiatoire'' is an uncompromising late neoclassical religious building. Chateaubriand found it "the most remarkable edifice in Paris". The Chapel sanctuary at the center of a

Greek cross The Christian cross, with or without a figure of Jesus, Christ included, is the main religious symbol of Christianity. A cross with a figure of Christ affixed to it is termed a crucifix and the figure is often referred to as the ''corpus'' (La ...

, is composed of three coffered half-domed lateral galeries They contain monuments and supplement the subdued natural light entering through the skylight of the main dome. In the center, the main cupola is decorated with pendantives representingn sculpted angels. They were made by sculptor Francois-Antoine Gerard (1760-1843) The

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

contains a black and white marble altar which marks the place where the Royal remains were at one time located.Dumoulin, p. 108 File:Paris (75008) Chapelle expiatoire Coupole 01.JPG, The cupola and smaller oculus File:Chapelle expiatoire Paris interieur.jpg, The altar File:Chapelle expiatoire - voutes de la galerie latérale.jpg, Lateral gallery File:Crypt @ Chapelle Expiatoire @ Square Louis XVI @ Paris (34201440972).jpg, The Crypt

Art and Decoration

White marble sculptures of the king and queen angels were made by François Joseph Bosio and Jean-Pierre Cortot. They depict the moments that the King and Queen, about to die, were supported by angels. A bas-relief by French sculptor François-Antoine Gérard depicts the exhumation and removal of the remains of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette to the

Basilica of St Denis The Basilica of Saint-Denis (, now formally known as the ) is a large former medieval abbey church and present cathedral in the commune of Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris. The building is of singular importance historically and archite ...

. File:Statue de Louis XVI soutenu par un ange, Chapelle expiatoire.jpg, "Louis XVI, called to immortality, supported by an angel" by Francois-Joseph Bosio File:Statue de Marie-Antoinette agenouillée devant la Religion, Chapelle expiatoire.jpg, "Marie Antoinette supported by an angel", by Jean-Pierre Cortot

Pendatives

The pendatives which suoport the cupola have their own elaorate sculptural decoration. Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments (), or the Decalogue (from Latin , from Ancient Greek , ), are religious and ethical directives, structured as a covenant document, that, according to the Hebrew Bible, were given by YHWH to Moses. The text of the Ten ...