English
The Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés is considered the oldest church in Paris. Located in District 6,a graceful neighborhood full of cafes, art galleries and luxury shops. It was a very intellectually and prestigious area at the time of existentialism when cafes were frequented by intellectuals such as Sartre and Beauvoir.
Located on the left bank of the seine river at the outskirts of early medieval Paris, a location prone to flooding at the time of its construction, the Abbey had to be placed in the middle of the prairie or “pres” in French, hence the name.
Founded in the sixth century by the Merovingian king Childebert I. In 542, at war with Spain, the king withdrew the siege on the city of Zaragoza when he learned that its inhabitants had seeked protection from San Vicente Martir. In gratitude, the bishop of Zaragoza gave the Merovingian saint´s robe, and Childibert on his return to Paris built the Santa Cruz Cathedral in order to house the relic and lay conserve kings tombs. After the Benedictine monastery was erected It is believed that that was when it took its current name from the bishop of Paris, Monsignor Germain. In the ninth century, the church was looted and burned to the ground at least four times by the Normans, leaving only the columns in the clerestory. It was rebuilt and enlarged in the 12th century by Pope Alexander III.
The Romanesque bell tower of the entrance was built as a solid buttress to support the weight of large bells, and is one of the oldest that are still standing in France.
The French Revolution desacralized many religious buildings such as the abbey, whichbecame a prison, a location where torture was frequent and where over two hundred Parisians died. Then it became a gunpowder and ammo warehouse. 15 tons of bombs exploded in it and started a terrible fire that destroyed the armory and many of its treasures such as the famous theological library and the medieval scriptorium. In the nineteenth century, Baltard Godde and architect restored the destroyed zone giving it the appearance it has today wherewe can find clear examples of Romanesque architecture that incorporates additions and reparations of different ages. Inside you can see a Romanesque nave and Gothic choir. Along with all the Merovingian kings who are buried there. We can also find the remains of Descartes, one of the undisputed fathers of logical reasoning and science today.
The church is open from 8 am to 8 pm, on the corner of the rue Bonaparte, stands a bust dedicated to the writer and poet Guillaume Apollinaire. Also dedicated to him, inside is a little drawing of a woman´s head whose authorship is Picasso´s a friend and admirer of the poet.
Ara
Relive the history of Paris from the sixth century to the present days by visiting the church and the charms of Paris Saint Germain in Paris renting apartments in Paris
Translated by: Marc