Paris - Sainte-Chapelle

Must-see attractions nearby: Eiffel Tower Montmartre Notre-Dame de Paris Musée d'Orsay Champs-Elysées Luxembourg Gardens Louvre

The chapel was built to house the very precious Christian relics which Louis had acquired from the Byzantine Emperor - and which had cost him two and a half times as much as the building of the chapel. The chapel then stood in the main courtyard of the royal palace, the site of which is now occupied by the Palais de Justice. During the 18th century one side of the chapel was joined up with a wing of the Palais de Justice. For more than 30 years (1802-37) the chapel was used for the storage of records, before being restored between 1841 and 1867.

The chapel stands in the large inner courtyard to the left of the entrance to the Palais de Justice. It is 33m/110ft long by 17m/55ft wide, 76m/250ft high to the tip of the spire and 42m/140ft to the top of the gable.