A little history of Notre-Dame-des-Victoires church in Paris
And also
The tops
The basilica's name comes from the siege of La Rochelle, when cardinal Richelieu defeated Protestants.
We can see a plaque: Louis XIII, roi très chrétien de France et of Navarre, a voulu élever ce monument à la piété des Augustins déchaussés de Paris, et leur ériger un temple sous la protection de la Vierge Marie et sous l'invocation de Notre-Dame-des-Victoires, lequel il dédia l'an du Seigneur 1629, le 9 mai, de son règne le XX, which means "King Louis XIII raised this church dedicated to Virgin Mary, named Notre-Dame-des-Victoires (Our-Lady-of-Victories), in May 9th 1629".
Well, Louis XIII laid down the first stone of the current church in December 1629. It was too small so they extended it 27 years later. It was only completed in 1740.
Pierre Le Muet raised the choir between 1629 and 1632. Libéral-Bruant raised the transept and the last bay of the nave from 1642 to 1666. Royal architect Sylvain Cartaud erected the portal in 1739.
Finally vaults were completed between 1737 and 1740. This church seems so austere, typical of the 17th century architecture, with its façade flanked by Ionic and Corinthian columns!
Fortunately, inside, what a surprise! Come over here: we can see huge paintings by Carle Van Loo, made for the church in the middle of the 18th century. Here, Jean-Baptiste Lulli’s tomb (Louis XIV's famous musician), with a bust by Jean Colignon.