This post is all about the most famous churches in Paris!

If you plan to visit Paris (France) in the coming weeks or months, there are many things to see!

Depending on your interests you could go and visit some fantastic impressionist museums, put a lock on some of the most iconic bridges in the city, or just wander around the city and admire the surrounding beauty.

One thing Paris has many of is churches! You might already know the most famous one: The Notre-Dame Cathedral.

However, there are others to be explored that you should definitely know about!

Here is a list of the most famous churches in Paris!

 

Famous churches in Paris

 

Let’s have a look at the most famous churches in Paris. We will start with the most famous one: Notre Dame de Paris!

Unfortunately, a devastating fire destroyed part of the Gothic church in April 2019 as well as the very famous spire of Notre Dame. Since then, the church has been closed to the public. You can still go to the Parvis de Notre Dame to have a glimpse at the facade and have a look at the mini-exhibitions on the progress of the reconstruction. The church should reopen to the public in 2024.

 

• Notre Dame Cathedral

It is located at the heart of Paris on the Île de la Cité, located between the Latin Quarter and Les Halles.

This church is so popular that it has become as famous of a landmark as the Eiffel Tower. Notre Dame Cathedral truly represents Paris, and some would say of France.

Every year there were between 13 and 14 million visitors come to admire this beautiful church, making it one of the most visited landmarks in Europe. It’s been a World Heritage site since 1991.

You might also know it from Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”. There are quite a few scenes that take place in Notre-Dame de Paris. This is not the only film adaptation of the original masterpiece from the very famous French writer, Victor Hugo. He wrote his historical novel “Notre Dame de Paris” in 1831.

It is a catholic church dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The church took almost two centuries to be built: from 1163 to 1345. There were some substantial restorations during the French Revolution. As a result, the cathedral has many architectural styles, though the main one is the Gothic style. It has two rose windows on each arm of the transept which are among the largest in Europe.

This church has seen some of the most famous events of French history like the coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte as France’s first Emperor and the funerals of many French Presidents.

They installed bleachers for everyone to have a better view, making it a nice (but crowded) place to have a little picnic.

You have several options to get to Notre Dame. if you are using the metro, get off at the metro station “Hôtel de Ville” on line 1, or “Saint-Michel Notre-Dame” on line 4.

 

• Eglise Saint-Roch 

Saint-Roch’s is one of the largest churches in Paris. It is located quite close to Notre Dame Cathedral, just opposite the Tuileries Garden and the Louvre.

The church was built between 1653 and 1722 and it is in the Baroque style.

It is known as the parish of artists, mainly because some famous French artist’s funerals have been celebrated in this church. Some of the internationally famous ones are Yves Saint-Laurent and Jane Birkin.

The church is dedicated to Saint Roch. Roch was born in the south of France, in Montpellier to a wealthy family. He studied medicine and then decided to go on a pilgrimage to Rome to meet the Pope.

When first built, the church was located in a very wealthy neighborhood, which explained the rich furnishing of the church. However, during the French Revolution of 1789, the church was plundered. The location of the church made it so that it was at the heart of the battles of the French Revolution. So much so that the facade of the church still shows some damage from bullets and canons.

Since then, the church has retrieved some of its original heritage and paintings.

To get to the Saint-Roch church, get off at metro station “Tuileries” on line 1.

 

• Saint Sulpice

This is another church from the Catholic faith, located in the 6th arrondissement Paris on the Place Saint-Sulpice.

Since the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral and for the time of the restoration, the Eglise Saint-Sulpice has been used as a temporary cathedral.

It is located in the very hype neighborhood of Saint Germain in the 6th arrondissement. You can get off at the metro station “Saint-Sulpice” on line 4 or “Mabillon” on line 10.

The church was built in 1180 and is dedicated to Sulpice le Pieux, the archbishop of the city of Bourges. However, this is not the first church to have been built in that location. Some archeological finds showed that there was a chapel in that same location in the 10th century.

The church you see today is not how it had been when it was first built. There have been many works done on it from the 17th century to the 21st century.

Following the French Revolution, the church transformed itself into a forage store and a banquet hall.

A physicist even installed on the tower of the church a system to send out telegraph. One of the towers was for messages to Lyon and Turin. The other one was for telegraph to Strasbourg and Mayence.

 

• Sainte Chapelle 

This gothic church is located on the Ile de la Cité, which is surrounded by the river Seine. It dates back to the 13th century.

The Sainte Chappelle was the church of the Royal Palace de la Cité. This palace was the residence of the French kings from the 10th century to the 14th century. The only buildings remaining from that royal palace are the Conciergerie and the Sainte-Chapelle. You can visit both during your Paris trip.

Part of the palace was converted into a state prison in 1370. One of the most famous prisoners was the Queen Marie-Antoinette in 1793.

This church was built at the request of King Louis IX to protect a relic of Jesus Christ. The relics in question were the Crown of Thorns and a fragment of the True Cross. It took only 7 years to build and one the most remarkable feature are the stained-glass windows.

King Louis IX, known today as Saint Louis, was considered a saint during his reign and was canonized by the Catholic Church in 1297.

During the French Revolution, the relics were lost, thus losing the purpose of the church’s existence. It stopped being used as a church in 1790. It then became the archive of the Palace of Justice, which is just beside the church.

Get off at the metro station “Cité” on line 4 to visit this beautiful church!

 

• Eglise de la Madeleine

The église de la Madeleine is located on the place de la Madeleine in the 8th arrondissement of Paris.

This a neoclassical church with Corinthian columns in the front. Napoleon wanted the church to be reminiscent of a Greek Temple. It was built to honor his army. This historical monument does not look like a church. Its architecture is very close to the Assemblée Nationale and the Bourse.

The patron of the church is Mary Magdalene. This can be seen on the church’s facade in the Latin inscription: “D.O.M. SVB. INVOCAT S. MAR. MAGDALENÆ”. This means “To Almighty and Great God, under the invocation of Saint Mary Magdalene”.

This church took 85 years to build. It took this long, due to the troubled political times from the end of the 18th century to the beginning of the 19th century.

Many celebrities have had their funerals in this church: Frédéric Chopin, Coco Chanel, Josephine Baker, and more recently the very famous French singer Johnny Hallyday.

There are many classical music concerts in this church, which you can attend. You can have a look at the musical program directly on the website of the Madeleine church.

It’s quite easy to get to this church: there is a metro station with its name: the “Madeleine” stop on metro line 8 or 14.

 

• Saint-Eustache church

This beautiful Catholic church is in the heart of the 1st arrondissement, near Les Halles district.

The church is dedicated to Eutache de Macon. he was a Roman general who converted to Christianity.

There has been a church in that location since the 13th century. At the time it was only a chapel, which was dedicated to Saint Agnes.

In 1223, it was decided to transform the Saint Agnes chapel into the Saint-Eustache church. This most likely coincided with the transfer of a relic belonging to the Saint Eustache.

The church we see today was built in the middle of the 16th century. The style is mainly Gothic, with a touch of antique Greece with the columns and some Renaissance ornaments. All this makes the looks of the church very unique and special.

The church was finally finished in 1633. It took almost one century!

The Saint-Eustache church has seen its fair share of celebrities: Mozart was baptized there, and writers La Fontaine and Marivaux’s funerals were held in the church.

Get off at the metro station “Les Halles” on line 4 to visit this little gem!

 

• Sacre Coeur Basilica

This is another very iconic church of Paris: the Sacré Coeur Basilica, which is located in a very famous and touristy neighborhood of Paris: Montmartre.

This church was built quite late in the history of Paris. Construction started only in 1875. due to the political climate and the various wars that took place, it was only finished in 1923.

Following the French Revolution, the place of the church and religious practices took a hit. The intent of the construction of the Sacré Coeur Basilica was to put religious practice back at the center of the Parisians’ life.

Since the church was built on a hill and its dome is quite high (83 meters high – 272 feet high), you can see it from many places in Paris.

This is the second most visited religious monument in Paris, after the Notre Dame Cathedral.

The Montmartre hill has long been a place of religious practices. It goes all the back to the religions of the Gauls. Then the Romans built a temple dedicated to Mars. In the 3rd century, a Christian chapel was built and dedicated to Saint-Denis (a martyr who was decapitated on this hill).

If you are planning on visiting this site, be prepared for the high density of tourists you’ll have it visit it with you. Especially if you are planning a trip in late spring and summer.

To visit the Sacré Coeur, you can either get off at the metro station “Abbesses” on line 12 or “Anvers” on line 2. Be prepared if you choose the “Abbesses” station for the very many steps to get out of the metro. There is an elevator, however, you might have to queue quite a bit during the peak of tourist season!

 

• Eglise Saint Augustin

The Saint-Augustin church was built in the second half of the 19th century. At that time Paris was transforming a lot under the impulsion of the prefect Haussmann.

He was building the large avenues we know today in the whole city. The 8th arrondissement district in which the church was built was a new neighborhood. The great avenues were magnificent, and the housing buildings were beautiful, but they lacked prestigious monuments.

The location of the Saint Augustin church may not be the most appropriate for a church: it is very noisy! It is right in front of the Boulevard Haussmann and Boulevard Malesherbes, which are big arteries of Paris. On the plus side: this is a very visible church, and you might likely walk or drive past it.

The church is dedicated to Saint Augustin, who was born in today’s Algeria in the year 354. The style of the church is inspired by the Roman and Byzantine arts. Another interesting fact is that its structure is in metal.

The church has been in a poor state for many years and is currently under renovation.

To visit the church, you can get off at the station “Saint-Augustin” on metro line 9.

 

• Eglise Saint Germain des Prés

The Eglise Saint Germain des Prés is one of the oldest churches in Paris.

It is an old royal abbey founded in the 6th century by the Merovingian King Childebert the 1st. The abbey had marble columns, and rose windows. It was a royal necropolis up until the creation of the Saint-Denis basilic. It also held some relics belonging to Saint Vincent.

There have been some major remodeling of the church in the 10th century. The gothic architecture was new at the time and it was a starting point for that style.

Following the French Revolution, all abbeys were closed. For the Saint Germain des Prés church, this meant a closing in the year 1792. The monks that lived in the abbey had to flee and all the furniture was sold or destroyed.

The church then became a saltpeter factory before being reinstated as a church in 1803. The church was in a very poor state when it reopened for services. There was even a risk of seeing it collapse. The church had to wait until 1823 for the renovation works to be finished and for it to be safe again for the worshipers and visitors of the church.

There is even a metro station with the name of the church, “Saint-Germain-des-Prés” on metro line 4.

 

• Royal Chapel of Versailles

If all the above Paris churches are not enough and you want more, here is another one for you: the Royal Chapel of Versailles.

You might have already planned a visit to the Versailles Palace. There is a lot to see: the Palace has many rooms and the grounds of the Palace are quite vast. If this is your first visit you might not prioritize the Royal Chapel of Versailles.

However, it is quite a beautiful church. If you don’t have time during the day for a visit, you could always enjoy its splendor during a musical concert. You can check out the program directly on their website.

The chapel was finalized at the end of the reign of King Louis XIV in 1710. It is dedicated to Saint Louis, which we mentioned above in the section regarding the Sainte Chapelle of Paris. The resemblance does not stop with this dedication. The architecture of the Royal Chapel of Versailles is also reminiscent of the one in Paris.

 

This post has been a list of all the most famous and best churches in Paris!

 

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