Located a block or so northwest of église Madeleine, the chapelle expiatoire sits at the location of the Madeleine cemetery, which was arguably the prime dumping ground for the victims of the Terror.
Now at the center of a small park, Square Louis XVI, that was constructed around it during the Haussmanian re-adjustment of Paris, the monument is a quiet, aesthetically-pleasing surprise in the middle of an expensive neighborhood.
Despite its proximity to Madeleine, tourists appear to be a rarity, as evidenced by the caretaker’s surprise that we were from the States.
As a bonus, there was a friendly (overly) well-fed cat.
The front of the pavilion, as seen from the entrance to the park.
The dedication inscribed over the entrance.
A fat kitty. Look at the fat kitty.
Not actually tombs, these are intended to memorialize the swath of Swiss guards that were massacred when the royal family was arrested at Tuileries.
I like the hourglasses with wings.
The actual chapel. The garden was constructed using soil and remains from the Madeleine cemetery (which wasn’t difficult, considering the monument was built at the location of the old cemetery).
We’re being stalked by a pudgy ghost.
The inside of the chapel, as seen from the entrance.
Marie-Antoinette before Religion. This, and the Louis statue that stands on the opposite side of the space, were donated by the couple’s eldest daughter (who survived the revolution and married the eldest son of Charles X) in the mid 1830s.
A statue of Louis XVI.
The bas-relief that depicts the movement of the royal remains from Madeleine cemetery to the basilique Saint-Denis.
The dome.
The crypt that lies below the chapel. This marks the former location of the king’s coffin in the cemetery.
A picture of the side gallery leading to the gift shop (and also a pretty damn good picture, if you ask me).
Fezzik In Paris 