florida state university college of visual arts, theatre and dance ...

develop the striking design. Just as the placement of twin towers on the west façade of a church
drew visual emphasis, the example at the Oratory accentuated the section closest to the Louvre,
drawing it into the context of the palace and emphasizing its relationship with the royal building.
Added to this was the long association of twin towers with rulership. Their placement at the end
of the church closest to the seat of power endowed the church with forceful symbolism,
signifying the French Oratory’s status as the palace chapel.
Enhancing the prominent visual emphasis generated by the twin towers was a fleur-de-lis,
the emblem of the French monarchy, displayed on the top of each cupola (fig. 14). Although the
symbol began appearing on royal coins and seals in the twelfth century, legends claimed the
fleur-de-lis originated in the fifth century with Clovis (481-511), the first Christian king of
France. The story recounts that the then pagan king, on the verge of a great battle with rivals,
miraculously received from an angel a shield adorned with lilies. 53 Aided by the heaven-sent
armor, Clovis went on to win the battle and to convert to Christianity, adopting the divine
insignia as the royal arms of France. The story of Clovis’s gift from heaven was added to the
other honors bestowed on French monarchs, including the anointment at the royal sacre with
holy chrism delivered by a dove from heaven, the right to receive Communion of bread and
wine, which was otherwise reserved for priests, and the ability to heal through touch people
affected by the disease scrofula. 54 Taken together, these privileges demonstrated that France
enjoyed the special approval of God and held an elevated status among other Christian
kingdoms. 55
As a royal symbol, the fleur-de-lis appeared on the crown’s jewelry, books, textiles, and
buildings to promote the power of the French monarchy. Of the buildings, palace chapels were
some of the first to receive this distinction, most notably the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris, begun in
1242 by King Louis IX (1226-1270). Here glaziers included fleurs-de-lis on blue backgrounds
as part of heraldic devices in windows illustrating the coronation of kings (fig. 17). 56 Religious
foundations receiving royal support also had a history of incorporating the fleur-de-lis. The
thirteenth-century Abbey of Saint-Denis, another project associated with Louis IX, employed the
royal emblem to reinforce the authority of the throne. 57 The decoration of the interior and
exterior included paintings and reliefs of the fleur-de-lis, some of which can still be seen on the
dado and door jambs of the south transept portal.
59