Saint Michel d'Aiguilhe
Encyclopedia
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
in Aiguilhe
Aiguilhe
Aiguilhe is a commune in the Haute-Loire department in south-central France.Aiguilhe is close to Le Puy-en-Velay, and famous for the Saint Michel chapel....
, near Le Puy-en-Velay
Le Puy-en-Velay
Le Puy-en-Velay is a commune in the Haute-Loire department in south-central France.Its inhabitants are called Ponots.-History:Le Puy-en-Velay was a major bishopric in medieval France, founded early, though its early history is legendary...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, built in 962 on a volcanic
Volcano
2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...
formation 85 metres (278.9 ft) high. The chapel is reached by 268 steps carved into the rock. It was built to celebrate the return from the pilgrimage of Saint James
Way of St. James
The Way of St. James or St. James' Way is the pilgrimage route to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition has it that the remains of the apostle Saint James are buried....
.
In 1429, the mother of Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc
Saint Joan of Arc, nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" , is a national heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. A peasant girl born in eastern France who claimed divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the...
, Isabelle Romée
Isabelle Romée
Isabelle Romée, also known as Isabelle de Vouthon and Isabelle d'Arc and Ysabeau Romee, was the mother of Joan of Arc. She was a native of Vouthon-Bas, a village near Domrémy-la-Pucelle where she and her husband Jacques d'Arc settled. Together they owned about of land and a modest house...
, was said to have come to the site to pray.