The church | ©Velual / CC-BYSaint Geneviève hill's parishioners used to gather in the crypt of Sainte-Geneviève abbey, near the altar "Saint-Jean-du-Mont".
In 1221, they were allowed to raise a real church, replaced by the current building in the 15th century.
Architect Etienne Viguier started the building work in 1492 with the choir, completed in 1540; the 50 metres high square bell-tower was finished in 1628, the Renaissance portal between 1606 and 1622 based on plans by Claude Guérin.
The famous jubé ("rood-screen", unique in Paris) was designed by Antoine Beaucorps (1530-1545).
The church inherited from sainte Geneviève's tomb in 1803: even a piece of the 512 grave was found (the saint's reliquary was burnt in 1793 during French revolution!)
This chapel was richly decorated and a new reliquary was made in 1853.