Stop Three - the Hunt for Marguérite

I've been to Notre-Dame.

Notre-Dame. Nice clean up job after the fire, non?

I've been to the château in Saint-Germain-en-Laye.

St-Germain-en-Laye. Cool place, no Marguérite.

Nada.

I've been looking for traces of Marguérite de Provence, the wife of Louis IX and eldest sister in my musical about four sisters in medieval Provence who all become queens (!).

Marguérite upper left. Clockwise: Sancie, Béatrice, Aliénor.

Next I head to Sainte-Chapelle. Heaven on earth to her husband, Louis IX - aka Saint Louis. Does he share it with her?

After all, they lived right next door!

The Lower Chapel. For the staff. Not bad!

Louis had Sainte-Chapelle constructed between 1242-1248 to house the Crown of Thorns, THE most important relic in Christendom. He gave the equivalent of half the annual budget of France to the debt-ridden emperor of Byzantine for it in 1239. More than building Sainte-Chapelle itself - so obviously a pretty penny.

There were actually 22 relics, including a piece of the cross. They're all now in the treasury at Notre-Dame (which is free with your Passion Monuments card - get one! - you'll thank me).

That's cause Sainte-Chapelle was trashed during the French Revolution. The Crown et al was moved to Notre-Dame for safe-keeping. Where it remains.

The first Friday of the month, you can kiss the crown! (3-5pm, get there early. See my earlier post about that.)

Only the King and his closest could worship in the upper chapel, which they entered through the outdoor terrace. Louis and his family lived in the Palais de la Cité, which was attached (and which is now the Palais de Justice).

Fun fact: the Palais de la Cité was the royal residence since Clovis, the first French king. He dropped the "C," changed the "v" to "u" - and became the 1st Louis.

How many King Louis's were there?

I actually wrote a funny (I think) parody song about this.

"A Whole Lotta Louis."

The staff worshiped in the chapel below. Where the riffraff like me now buy souvenirs (mints with the logo on the tin!)

And where there are lots of traces of Louis's mother, Blanche de Castille. Her coat of arms - towers on a red background - are everywhere.

Blanche of Castille is red. France and the fleur de lys are blue.

HOW 'BOUT THOSE WINDOWS???

There are 15 of them depicting 1113 scenes from the Bible.

14 of them - all except the 1st - should be read left to right, bottom to top.

Louis favorite window tells the story of the Book of Numbers which depicted the Exodus.

Watch/hear how Marguérite, his wife, remembers him...

The favorite window of Louis's mother Blanche was the Book of Esther. Just as Esther saved her people from extermination, so did Blanche protect the French by raising her young son Louis to be a great king.

Marguérite's mini-mono here. Life with Blanche was...complicated. She was a force.

Blanche is in the gift shop. Marguérite isn't. THAT'S NOT RIGHT.

I'LL BE BACK in Paris this week.

This time, I'm going to be an optimist. I'll imagine she is there...

WHAT WOULD SHE BE THINKING? FEELING?

STAY TUNED...