Who was the French Abbot named Suger?

The French Abbot Suger was given at the early age of 10 as an oblate (person dedicated to God’s service) to St. Denis, a large medieval abbey church, now in the northern suburb of Paris. Suger (c. 1081/13 -1151) began his early studies there and ascended to become a statesman and historian. He was an early patron of gothic architecture and widely credited with popularizing the style.

He served as a friend and counsellor both of King Louis VI and Louis VII. In 1137, he decided to rebuild the great Church of Saint-Denis, the burial church of the French monarchs.

Suger began with the West front, reconstructing the original Carolingian facade with its single door. He designed the facade of Saint-Denis to be an echo of the Roman Arch of Constantine with its three-part division and three large portals to ease the problem of congestion. The rose stained glass window above the West portal is the earliest-known such example, although Romanesque circular windows preceded it in general form.

When the new structure was finished and dedicated in June 1144, in the presence of the King, it became the prototype for further building in the royal domain of northern France. Today, it is often cited as the first building in the Gothic style.

He also became one of the foremost historians of his time writing about the lives of both King Louis VI and VII.