Classified as a historic monument in 1973, its history is similar to that of the Taj Mahal, a testament to the immense love of a husband for his wife.
In 1743, the Marquis Louis-Victor de Mailly married Antoinette Cadot de Sébeville. She died in 1752, aged 26. Grieving greatly, her husband had a chapel mausoleum built for her in 1757.
A staircase leads down to the crypt, which contains the remains of Jean III de Mailly, a descendant of Empress Elisabeth de Wittelsbach, better known as Sissi, as well as some fifteen lead coffins from the de Mailly family.
The interior, in stone and marble, forms an oval measuring 12.40m by 10.30m. Twin Ionic pilasters support an entablature on which rests a domed vault, pierced by an oculus.
The chapel features a magnificent sculpture by Dupuis, who created Antoinette's funeral monument. She is shown kneeling on a Prie-Dieu, with two weeping putti, reminiscent of the weeping angel in Amiens Cathedral. At the back, an angel holds a trumpet.
A must-see for lovers!
