Sacré-Coeur - Montmartre Basilica

The Sacred-Heart Basilica of Montmartre stands out in Paris with its Romano-Byzantine architecture. That is unlike the majority of Paris monuments who are very often either of Classic architecture or inspired by Greco-Roman architecture.

The actual reason for building the Sacré-Coeur is related to the 1870 Paris Commune - aka the 4th French Revolution, which results were seen as divine punishment by Catholics. The Paris Arch Bishop wished to build a church to cleanse the sins that had led to the defeat of the French army, the occupation of Paris by foreign troops, the war death tolls, and the starvation of the population.

The site for the construction of the church was chosen as it was the place where Saint Denis, the first bishop of Paris, was beheaded in the third century.

And if you ever wondered how this church looks so white in a city where pollution doesn’t take long to blacken the city’s facades? The particular stone that was used produces calcite when it comes in contact with rain water, thus causing the stone to stay white or appear to clean itself!