The Church of Notre-Dame, Versailles (french: Église Notre-Dame de Versailles), is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...

Yvelines Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, in the Rue de la Paroisse.

History

The church was built at the command of

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Ver ...

by Jules Hardouin-Mansart in the Baroque (French Classicism) (see:

17th-century French art 17th-century French art is generally referred to as Baroque, but from the mid- to late 17th century, the style of French art shows a classical adherence to certain rules of proportion and sobriety uncharacteristic of the Baroque as it was prac ...

) architectural style and was consecrated on 30 October 1686. The parish of Notre-Dame included the Palace of Versailles and thus registered the baptisms, marriages and burials of the French royal family. In 1791 it was declared a cathedral but converted to a Temple of Reason in 1793. After the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

the

bishop of Versailles The Roman Catholic Diocese of Versailles ( Latin: ''Dioecesis Versaliensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Versailles'') is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, in France. The diocese, headed by the Bishop of Versailles, was est ...

chose the Church of Saint-Louis as his seat instead (the present

Versailles Cathedral Versailles Cathedral (French: ''Cathédrale Saint-Louis de Versailles'') is a Roman Catholic church located in Versailles, France. It is a national monument. It is the seat of the Bishop of Versailles, created as a constitutional bishopric in 179 ...

). Between 1858 and 1873, a new chapel was added by the architect Le Poittevin, who also built the market-halls of the ''Marché Notre-Dame''. The church contains sculptures by Pierre Mazzeline and Noël Jouvenet. The church has been classed as a '' monument historique'' since 4 August 2005.

Cemetery

The Cemetery of Notre-Dame (french: Cimetière Notre-Dame) was established by the church and parish of Notre-Dame in 1777 and covers three hectares. Besides quantities of burials of aristocrats, members of religious orders and people of artistic or historic interest, there is also an enclosed section for soldiers of the

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

n army who fell during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.

Notes and references

Sources and external links

Church of Notre-Dame, Versailles: official website
17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in France Roman Catholic churches in Versailles

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