Overview

The Val-de-Grâce Church and Abbey constitute an impressive building built by Queen Ann of Austria in the middle of the 17th Century. The Abbey dates from 1621 and was built to pay tribute to her first-born child, future King Louis XIV, whom she was thankful to be pregnant with after 23 years. The church and the monastery were erected during the second part of the 17th Century under the direction of French architect François Mansart. Since the French Revolution, it has been home to a military hospital. The interior of the church is worth a visit for its numerous sculptures and paintings from Philippe de Champaigne.