Saint Paul-Saint Louis Church, the only Jesuit church in Paris

Begun with the support of Louis XIII, who gave it his name, it was completed in 1641. The church was renowned for the richness of its furnishings and works of art, scattered by the Revolution and now displayed at the Louvre and in Chantilly. From 1641 to 1762, it reached its peak: Bossuet and Bourdaloue delivered their sermons here, which Madame de Sévigné came to hear; Marc-Antoine Charpentier and Rameau served as chapel masters. The hearts of Louis XIII and Louis XIV were long preserved here. The Revolution stripped the church of its artworks, turned it into a storage site for books from destroyed convents in the area, and repurposed it for the Cult of Reason. It regained its religious role in 1802, adding Saint-Paul to its name after the neighboring Saint-Paul church was destroyed. Baltard was tasked with its restoration during the Second Empire. The Baroque church features a theatrical three-tiered façade, with two Corinthian and one Composite levels. Inside, its layout draws inspiration from Rome’s Gesù church: the side chapels serve as aisles, and its dome was the largest of its time. The neighboring Lycée Charlemagne has occupied the former 17th-century Jesuit residence since 1802.