Which king died rotten?

1774 : a burial that no one watches

Louis XV contracts smallpox and dies within days. The contagion and the state of the body require swift action: the procession leaves for Saint-Denis at night, without the protocol that normally accompanied a King of France. This is a detail visitors often know better than the dates of the choir’s consecration, and it reveals a truth: the royal funeral spectacle did not always work. The logic behind this ceremony is explained in why the kings are here.

1685 : Louis XIV’s teeth

The king’s physicians keep a record, the Journal de santé du Roi, which notes everything. It describes the 1685 operation: his teeth are pulled, and the procedure perforates the palate, leading to long-term problems. This is a documented fact, not a court legend. Louis XIV dies thirty years later from gangrene in his leg: see where Louis XIV’s body is.

What the basilica shows

Nothing, directly, and it’s important to know this before visiting. The Bourbons have no sculpted effigies; their bodies were destroyed in 1793, and what could be recovered in 1817 is mixed in the ossuary of the crypt. There is no morbid display, no exposed relics, no macabre staging. Those who come for this leave disappointed; I prefer to say so upfront. See the crypt.

What is truly impressive on site

The transis: beneath the dressed effigies of Louis XII and Anne of Brittany, the naked, emaciated bodies are sculpted, as if autopsied. This is the 16th-century way of depicting physical death in stone, at eye level. No one needs a sordid anecdote after seeing this. The details are on the effigies, and the itinerary is on what to see in the basilica.

Frequently asked questions