The Basilica of Saint-Remi is a minor basilica in Reims whose history is closely tied to Bishop Remigius, who died in 533 at the age of 96 and was buried in the small chapel of Saint Christopher outside the city walls. As veneration of his relics grew, the chapel’s administration changed and the building was expanded. Gregory of Tours mentioned the Basilica of Saint Remigius in the 570s, and a solemn transfer of the relics to a new church took place on October 1, which later became the feast day of Saint Remigius in Austrasia and East Francia.
In 760, Archbishop Tilpin founded an abbey and settled monks from Saint-Denis abbey there. The abbey later received official status as the Benedictine Abbey of Saint Remigius, and donations and devotion to Saint Remigius led to rapid growth. Benedictine monks served at the relics and received pilgrims for more than 1000 years until the French Revolution. The abbey church was expanded in the 9th century and consecrated by Archbishop Ginkmar of Reims on October 1, 852. In the 11th century, construction included a large Romanesque church plan with an eleven-bay nave, a large porch, and a choir for monks near the transept.
Nearby Objects
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Saint-Remi Abbey 60 m away -
Musée Saint-Remi 60 m away -
Old Church of Saint-Nicaise 300 m away -
Les Crayères 750 m away -
Basilique Sainte-Clotilde de Reims 900 m away
Early Growth of the Basilica and Abbey
Bishop Remigius died at the age of 96 in 533 and was buried in the small chapel of Saint Christopher outside the city walls of Reims. As veneration of his relics increased, the administration of the chapel changed and the site was expanded. The Basilica of Saint Remigius is mentioned by Gregory of Tours in the 570s, and the solemn transfer of Remigius' relics to a new church took place on October 1, a date that later became his feast day in Austrasia and East Francia.
In 760, Archbishop Tilpin founded an abbey and settled monks from Saint-Denis abbey there. The institution received official status as the Benedictine Abbey of Saint Remigius, and continued to grow rapidly because of the cult of Saint Remigius and donations. Benedictine monks served at the relics and received pilgrims for more than 1000 years, until the French Revolution. The abbey church was expanded in the 9th century and consecrated by Archbishop Ginkmar of Reims on October 1, 852. At Ginkmar's decision, the relics of Saint Remigius were placed in a silver-covered reliquary.
By the 10th century, the abbey had acquired a group of buildings outside the city walls, together with its own enclosure and a small settlement under abbey control. Until 945, the abbey abbot was elected by the monks with permission of the archbishops of Reims. The abbey was also the place where Charlemagne received Pope Leo III.
From Romanesque Beginnings to Gothic Rebuilding
The Basilica of Saint-Remi began as an ambitious Romanesque church project under Abbot Airard, who started construction between 1007 and 1010. The undertaking soon exceeded available funds, and Abbot Thierry ordered part of the completed building demolished before launching a more modest project. Several features of the first design survived, including nave columns with cluster shapes and rich carvings, as well as an early 11th century altar area extended into an apse for the remains of Saint Remigius. The original plan also included three lateral apses attached to the transept arms, side chapels in the long transept, and an eleven-bay nave with a large porch meant to receive many parishioners. The monks' choir occupied the three bays near the transept, and the structure was covered by a wooden rafter roof. The basilica was described as having spacious structural elements, with uniform bays and horizontal lines leading toward the altar.
The new basilica was consecrated by Pope Leo IX on October 1, 1049, during a Council held in Reims with many priests announcing church reforms. In the 12th century, the church was partially rebuilt with Gothic features. Under Abbot Odon, from 1118 to 1151, the abbey church received a mosaic floor and a large seven-section chandelier, and tomb monuments were added to emphasize the basilica's role as a royal burial site. Odon also sought to surpass the fame of Saint-Denis Abbey and Abbot Suger.
A major decorative and architectural campaign began under Abbot Peter of Celle, who governed from 1162 to 1181. He found the altar area cramped, with restricted access to relics, a narrow nave entrance, and poor lighting. He ordered the demolition of the porch while preserving the Romanesque towers at the corners of the building, extended the nave by two Gothic bays, and created a new facade open to daylight. He also replaced the Romanesque apse with a spacious altar area surrounded by an ambulatory and five radiating chapels. His successor Simon, abbot from 1182 to 1198, completed the project by raising the nave and transept walls with pointed arches and vaulted ceilings, adding round windows, and carrying out expensive stained glass installations.
Later interventions continued to reshape the building. In 1506, Archbishop Robert de Lenoncourt reconstructed the southern transept facade in flamboyant Gothic style, and in 1531 he placed ten tapestries illustrating the life of Saint Remigius in the choir. In 1602, Abbot-Archbishop Philippe du Bec shortened the northern transept wing by one bay and commissioned a large rose window, while the staircase leading to the monks' dormitory was rebuilt shortly afterward. The monastery library and school also enjoyed a high reputation, and the abbey later joined the Congregation of Saint Maur in the 17th century before the abbey and other French monasteries were closed in 1793.
Damage and Restoration in the Modern Era
The Basilica of Saint-Remi underwent repeated damage and restoration over more than a century. In 1793, revolutionaries plundered the church, breaking Romanesque mosaic floors to make room for horses and destroying the Holy Glasscase and many valuable church furnishings. The 12th-century stained-glass windows survived this devastation, and the building continued to function as a parish church after the events of that year. By the early 19th century, however, the nave's vaulted ceiling had become severely damaged.
Between 1830 and 1835, the vaulted ceiling was replaced with a wooden plastered ceiling, and Reims city architect Narcisse Brunet restored the upper facade levels. His restoration also altered the stone structure of the basilica's facade. In 1918, during World War I, the church was severely damaged by German artillery shelling. The ceiling burned down, leaving the nave exposed to bad weather, while the southern wall of the nave collapsed and part of the transept arm was destroyed.
Rebuilding the damaged parts took forty years. Under architect Henri Deneux, the restoration was described as flawless and included stone vaults above the nave. The basilica was fully ready for services on October 1, 1958. Later, in 1991, the Basilica of Saint Remi, the cathedral, and the Tau Palace were inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage sites. In 1996, Pope John Paul II visited the basilica to lead celebrations for the 1500th anniversary of Clovis's baptism by Saint Remi.
Architecture and Facade
The Basilica of Saint-Remi has a church plan in the form of a Latin cross. Its nave and transept arms are the oldest parts and are in Romanesque style, while the choir and gallery with side chapels are in Gothic style. The southern transept facade is the newest part of the building. The basilica has a relatively small number of sculptural decorations. On the main facade, two statues stand on restored antique columns: Saint Remigius and Saint Peter. The presence of Saint Peter on the facade indicates the church's Roman Catholic affiliation.
Choir, Stained Glass, and Interior Furnishings
The interior of the Basilica of Saint-Remi combines sculpture, stained glass, liturgical furnishings, and funerary monuments in a highly symbolic arrangement. In the choir above the monks' benches, the highest nave bays originally had figurally decorated capitals. Their late 12th century sculptures depict the predecessors of Jesus Christ announcing the Messiah, and some of these figures also appeared on a large mosaic decorating the monks' choir.
A major feature of the interior was a giant chandelier, 6 meters tall and made of seven sections, symbolizing the biblical Salvation narrative. The original 12th century chandelier was destroyed by revolutionaries, and the present chandelier is described as a mediocre copy, although it still serves its symbolic purpose. The choir was also reconstructed through the installation of stained glass windows in the high windows, inspired by the symbolism of light.
The stained glass program is organized along the main axis of the temple. The Virgin Mary stands at the highest level, with images of apostles and prophets to her right and left. Saint Remigius is placed below her at the center of the axis, surrounded by images of his successors, the archbishops of Reims, both canonized and non-canonized. Among those represented near the windows is Heinrich I of France, who died in 1175. In the central window of the basilica gallery, a large crucifix of Christ is shown, with the holy chalice collecting Christ's blood at the foot of the cross. Other windows on this level are large color compositions without metaphorical images, though small images of ancient figures were embedded in them, likely taken from windows of previous apses from around the 1140s. These small images show bishops, Old Testament kings, and holy virgins in no fixed order.
The central triad of stained glass windows in the choir was restored in the 20th century by the hereditary Reims glassmaster Jacques Simon from 1953 to 1956. During this restoration, several original fragments were added to the southern apse. Two new works were also introduced in the 20th century: the rose window on the northern facade, created by Jacques Simon in 1958, and the southern window decorated by his adopted son Charles Marc in 1976. The southern window is decorated with glowing doves symbolizing the legend of Saint Glassmaker.
Earlier, the choir displayed tapestries made in 1531 by order of Archbishop Robert of Lenoncourt. These tapestries presented episodes from the life of Saint Remigius, and they are now exhibited in the permanent collection of the Saint-Remi Museum next to the basilica. The altar area has lost its original appearance, but it includes a high altar of red marble delivered in 1803 from the abandoned Franciscan chapel. The high altar, church utensils, and lectern are dated to the 18th century. After the Revolution, the basilica also received various furnishings from other churches that no longer existed, and these are regarded as compensation for lost church property.
The basilica further contains tombs of several archbishops of Reims and members of the royal family, including the tombs of Frankish King Carloman, brother of Charlemagne, and King Louis IV of France.
The Tomb of Saint Remigius
The Tomb of Saint Remigius is located inside the enclosure built in the 1660s in the basilica choir. It was erected in 1847 by order of the Archbishop of Reims, Cardinal Tom-Marie-Joseph Hugues, to replace a monument destroyed by revolutionaries. The tomb was created in the Renaissance style using sculptures made between 1533 and 1537.
Its sculptural group, the Baptism of Clovis, is surrounded by statues of the twelve peers of France. These include the Archbishop of Reims holding a pastoral cross, the Bishop of Laon holding the Holy Glass, the Bishop of Langres holding a scepter, the Bishop of Beauvais holding a tunic, the Bishop of Chaalons holding a ring, and the Bishop of Noyon with a sash. The group also includes the Duke of Burgundy holding a crown, the Duke of Normandy holding a heraldic banner, the Duke of Aquitaine holding a battle standard, the Count of Toulouse holding spurs, the Count of Flanders holding a sword, and the Count of Champagne holding a banner.
The tomb contains the Holy Glass used in the anointing ceremony of French kings. It leaves the temple only on coronation day, under strict guard, in a procession to Reims Cathedral. The vial with the sacred oil was shattered in 1793. The relics are kept in a reliquary made in 1896 from gilded bronze with enamel painting, which is displayed annually in a novena and carried around the church after the solemn service on Saint Remigius's feast day.