Saint Étienne du Mont Church – One Of The Great Parisian Churches
Saint Étienne du Mont is one of the most beautiful churches in Paris, and resting place of St Genevieve, one of the patron saints of the city.
In our guide to St Étienne du Mont church we’ll point you in the direction of some of the wonderful architecture and features to admire, as well as looking back through its long, eventful history.
We also cover the basics including its location, how to get there and other things to see nearby.
Why Visit Saint Étienne du Mont?
Saint Étienne du Mont is one of the most amazing churches in Paris architecturally, and one of the six best churches in the city to visit.
It is best known as the resting place of St Genevieve, a patron saint of Paris who, according to tradition, helped save Paris from attack by Attila and his Hun army in 451 AD.
The interior is one of the most striking in Paris, with a unique jubé, or loft, with twin spiral staircases and Renaissance-style gateways dominating the view.
The west front of Saint Etienne du Mont is also spectacular, a mixture of Renaissance and Gothic styles that would have been perfect as a Harry Potter film location.
The northern steps of the church are a well-known Paris film location, from a scene in the Woody Allen movie Midnight in Paris.
Saint Étienne du Mont Church History
The area around the summit of Montaigne Sainte- Geneviève has been the site of churches since the 6th century. King Clovis founded the church of SS Peter and Paul and the Abbey of St Genevieve there, and he was eventually buried there, along with his Queen Clotilde and St Genevieve.
St Genevieve was a patron saint of Paris who, according to tradition, helped save Paris from attack by Attila and his Hun army, who went on to besiege Orléans on the river Loire to the south-west of Paris.
The church became a popular pilgrimage site, but eventually proved too small to accommodate the growing congregation. In 1222 a church was begun on the site immediately adjacent to the Abbey of St Genevieve – the site of the present church of St Etienne du Mont. Etienne is the French for Stephen, the first Christian martyr, and ‘du Mont’ means ‘of the hill’.
Little remains of this Gothic church. It was rebuilt between around 1492 and 1626, in a unique mixture of Flamboyant Gothic and Renaissance styles.
The Abbey church next door was replaced after 1744 by a larger church now known as the Panthéon.
Most of the relics of St Genevieve were destroyed in 1793, in the aftermath of the French Revolution. Some fragmentary remains were preserved, and these are still venerated in the church, where you’ll see her tomb and a chapel dedicated to her.
Things To See In Saint Étienne du Mont Church Paris
Stop to look at the west front of the church – where the main entrance is located – before entering. It’s a remarkable sight, an almost haphazard hotch-potch of different including a Gothic rose window and a Renaissance doorway below. The latter is similar to a Palladian portico, influenced by Classical Greek and Roman architecture, and the whole front of the church seems quite narrow, a result of the limited space available for the church. It’s quite an ensemble and I’ve always thought it has immense character and love it.
The interior of Saint Étienne du Mont is just as impressive, and again, it’s hard to think of anywhere quite like it. The inside of the church is bright and airy, flooded with light from the three galleries of large windows on either side of the church.
The most noticeable feature is the magnificent jubé, or rood loft, which separates the nave of the church from the chancel. It fulfils the same function as wooden rood screens in medieval churches elsewhere in Europe, but this is very different in appearance. It’s a stone bridge across the chancel, flanked by two spiral staircases and ornate Renaissance-era portals. The filigree stonework is incredibly intricate and detailed, and the portals are adorned with fine statuary, as shown above.
It’s also worth looking at the variety of architectural styles around the church. The Neoclassical arches and arcades of the nave date from the late 16th or early 17th century, and support a beautiful, elaborate late Flamboyant Gothic ceiling vault. Further inside the church, you may well notice the narrow Gothic-style arches behind the high altar, which were built around 50 years before the nave.
Many people visit Saint Étienne du Mont to see the shrine of Sainte Genevieve. It’s located on the south side of the church (on the right as you enter), and you’ll find her reliquary and a Chapel dedicated to her a few metres away.
Memorials In St Étienne Du Mont Church
Apart from the reliquary of St Genevieve, several notable French figures are interred in Saint Étienne du Mont.
These include playwright Jean Racine (memorial pictured above) and mathematician and physicist Blaise Pascal.
Saint Étienne du Mont and Midnight in Paris
Saint Étienne du Mont plays a fleeting but important role in Woody Allen’s 2011 movie Midnight in Paris.
The main character, Gil, goes off on a nightly trip back in time to the 1920s, where he encounters the likes of Ernest Hemingway, Salvador Dali, F Scott Fitzgerald and Cole Porter. These adventures begin when a car pulls up next to him as the sits on the north steps of St Etienne du Mont church.
Where Is St. Étienne Du Mont?
Saint Etienne du Mont is at the summit of Montaigne Sainte-Geneviève, in the Latin Quarter on the Left Bank in Paris. It is only 100 metres from another of the most famous churches in Paris, the Panthéon.
How To Get To Saint Étienne Du Mont Paris
The nearest Paris Metro stop to Saint Étienne du Mont is Cardinal Lemoine, on line 10. The station is around 250 metres’ walk from the church entrance on Place Sainte Geneviève.
The church is also around 300 metres from the Luxembourg stop on RER line B.
Otherwise, Jussieu and Place Monge on line 7 are a 5-10 minute walk away.
Things To See Near Saint Étienne Du Mont
The Panthéon is the most obvious place to visit near Saint Étienne du Mont. This monumental church was intended to house the relics of St Genevieve, but it was decided to use it as the burial place of great French people. Writers Voltaire and Rousseau are two of the earliest figures to be interred, and many more writers, scientists, politicians, war heroes and more have subsequently been buried there.
While visiting, be sure to climb the dome, which offers a superb view over Saint Étienne du Mont and also commands one of the best Eiffel Tower views in Paris.
It’s only a 5-minute walk down Rue Soufflot to the Jardin du Luxembourg, a gorgeous park laid out around the Palais du Luxembourg, which is home to the French Senate. It’s one of the most beautiful gardens in Paris, with attractions ranging from the wooden sail boats in the central pond to the ornate Medici fountain and one of the oldest carousels in Paris for the kids to enjoy.
You can walk down the Boulevard Saint-Michel to the Sorbonne, the heart of the University of Paris, or further down until the Cluny Museum of the Middle Ages. Alternatively, if you wish to see more Parisian churches, you could head towards Saint-Sulpice and Saint Germain des Prés in one direction, or Saint-Nicolas du Chardonnet, St Julien le Pauvre and Saint Severin towards the river Seine and Notre Dame.
Explore these other Churches in Paris:
La Sainte Chapelle Paris – The Stained-Glass Wonder of the Middle Ages
Visiting Sacre Coeur – The Byzantine Basilica of Montmartre
And take a look at some of our other Paris articles here:
Pont Alexandre III – the most beautiful bridge in Paris
Visiting the Statue of Liberty in Paris – seeking out the Parisian replicas of Lady Liberty
Abbesses Metro Station – the most beautiful Metro station in Paris
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