Reims cathedral guide
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It was at Reims that the kings of France were crowned - in the cathedral which has been carefully restored after it suffered severe damage in the First World War - including Charles VII in 1429 with the aid of Joan of Arc.
The three portals of the cathedral are laden with statues and statuettes. The central portal, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, is surmounted by a rose-window framed in an arch itself decorated with statuary. The “gallery of the kings” above shows the baptism of Clovis in the centre and statues of his successors.
The interior of the cathedral is 138.75 m long, 30 m wide in the nave, and 38 m high in the centre. It comprises a nave with aisles, transepts with aisles, a choir with double aisles, and an apse with ambulatory and radiating chapels. It has a profusion of statues similar to those of the outside, and stained glass of the 13th century. The rose-window over the main portal and the gallery beneath are of rare magnificence.
The cathedral possesses fine tapestries. Of these the most important series is that presented by Robert de Lenoncourt, archbishop under Francois I, representing the life of the Virgin. The north transept contains a fine organ in a flamboyant Gothic case. The choir clock is ornamented with curious mechanical figures. Several paintings, by Tintoretto, Nicolas Poussin, and others, and the carved woodwork and the railings of the choir, also deserve mention. Famous Russian painter Marc Chagall's work can also be admired in the cathedral through the stained glasses later installed at the back, and on the side of the cathedral.
The treasury contains the Sainte Ampoule, or holy flask, the successor of the ancient one that contained the oil with which French kings were anointed, which was broken at the French Revolution, a fragment of which the present Ampoule contains.
Palace of Tau
The palace of Tau is open to the public as a museum containing such exhibits as statues formerly displayed by the cathedral, treasures of the cathedral from past centuries, and royal attire from coronations of French kings.
Saint Remi of Reims Basilica
Saint Remi Basilica, an easy one-mile walk from the Cathedral of Notre Dame of Reims, is named for the 5th century saint Rémi who has been the patron saint of the inhabitants of Reims for more than 15 centuries. The basilica is almost equal in size to the cathedral. Adjacent to the basilica is an important abbey, formerly known as the Royal Abbey of St. Remi. The abbey sought to trace its heritage back to St. Remi, while the present abbey building dates back to the 17th and 18th centuries.
Notre-Dame de Reims Cathedral, the Former Abbey of Saint-Remi and the Palace of Tau were added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1991.
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