{{Infobox building , name = Saint-Louis Chapel, École Militaire , image = Central building of Ecole Militaire at dusk, Paris 7e 20140607 1.jpg , image_size = 250 , caption = Central École building, containing the chapel , completion_date = 1769-1773 , building_type = military academy chapel , website = {{URL, www.dioceseauxarmees,catholique.fr , location_city =

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (; ; ) is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 residents on 1 January 2023. Centered on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the cou ...

, location_country =

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 ...

, coordinates = {{coord, 48, 51, 09, N, 2, 18, 13, E, display=inline,title , address = 13 Place de Joffre, 75007 , architect =

Ange-Jacques Gabriel Ange-Jacques Gabriel (; 23 October 1698 – 4 January 1782) was the principal architect of King Louis XV of France. His major works included the Place de la Concorde, the École Militaire, and the Petit Trianon and opera theater at the Palace of ...

Saint-Louis Chapel is the chapel of the Ecole Militaire, the French Military Academy in Paris. It is located at 13 Place Joffre, in the

7th arrondissement of Paris The 7th arrondissement of Paris (''VIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. It is known for being, along with the 16th arrondissement and the ''commune'' of Neuilly-sur-Sein ...

. It is dedicated to Saint Louis, the patron saint of the Army. It is open to the public only during the

European Heritage Days European Heritage Days (EHD) is a joint action of the Council of Europe and the European Commission involving all 50 signatory states of the European Cultural Convention under the motto, ''Europe: a common heritage''. The annual programme offers ...

History

The chapel proposal was strongly supported by the

Marquise de Pompadour Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour (, ; 29 December 1721 – 15 April 1764), commonly known as Madame de Pompadour, was a member of the French Royal court, court. She was the official maîtresse-en-titre, chief mistress of King Lou ...

, the official mistress of the King. The assignment was given in 1751 to the chief royal architect,

, but there were financial difficulties and delays. The first stone was laid by

King Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...

in 1769, but it was not completed until 1773.

Napoleon Bonaparte 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 ...

, was a student in the miligary academy from 1785 to 186, and received his confirmation the chapel. During the French Revolution, the chapel was closed, looted, and in 1793 it was turned into a dining hall and ballroom. In 1795, Napoleon repossessed the building and made it his headquarters. The chapel was renovated, and the remains of

Joseph Joffre Joseph Jacques Césaire Joffre , (; 12 January 1852 – 3 January 1931) was a French general who served as Commander-in-Chief of French forces on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front from the start of World War I until the end of 19 ...

, French army commander and prominent figure of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, were honored there after his death in 1930. File:École Militaire Chapelle St Louis.jpg, Chapel interior

Art and Decoration

The chapel has a remarkable collection of eleven paintings illustrating scenes from the life of Saint Louis. These were commissioned from the leading French artists of the time, all members of the French Academy of the Arts, selected by Jean-Baptiste Pierre (1714–1789), the official painter of the King. He assigned painters for each scene of a selected series of events. They were all displayed together for the first time at the Salon of 1773.Demoulin (2012), Aline and Maingard, Jerome, "Chapelles de Paris", Massin publishers, 2012. File:La derniere communion de Saint Louis, roi de France, par Gabriel-Francois Doyen.jpg, "The Last Communion of Saint Louis", by Gabriel-Francois Doyen File:Descente du roi Saint Louis a Tunis, par Jean-Bernard Restout dit le Jeune.jpg, "The Descent of King Saint Louis at Tunis" by

Jean-Bernard Restout Jean-Bernard Restout (22 February 1732 – 18 July 1797) was a French painter. Life Restout was born and died in Paris. A son of Jean II Restout and like him a member of the Académie de Rouen, he won the Prix de Rome in 1758 and was aggrega ...

File:Entrevue de Saint Louis, roi de France, et du pape Innocent IV, a Lyon, en 1248, Louis Jean Francois Lagrenee.jpg, "Meeting of Saint Louis and Pope Innocent IV", by Louis Jean Francois Lagrenee File:Le Sacre de saint Louis - Charles-Amedee Van Loo.jpg, "The Coronation of Saint Louis", by

Charles-André van Loo Carle or Charles-André van Loo (; 15 February 1705 – 15 July 1765) was a French painter, son of the painter Louis-Abraham van Loo, a younger brother of Jean-Baptiste van Loo and grandson of Jacob van Loo. He was the most famous member of a s ...

References

Buildings and structures in the 7th arrondissement of Paris