Suger of Saint-Denis

Timeline

1. 1122–1124Saint-Denis · Seine-Saint-DenisIn 1122 Suger was elected Abbot of Saint-Denis, the abbey that served as the burial place of the Capetian dynasty. After taking office he reorganized the abbey's property, revised its archives, and quickly became Louis VI's most trusted financial and administrative adviser, closely linking royal affairs with abbey management.
2. 1124–1128Paris · Île-de-FranceAround 1124 Suger traveled to Rome as a papal legate; after returning he became more deeply involved in Louis VI's domestic affairs, coordinating royal revenues, raising funds for the Norman war and the Flemish expedition, and recording the expansion of royal power in the 1120s as described in the Historia Francorum. His financial methods provided a material foundation for consolidating Capetian royal power.
3. 1129–1130Saint-Denis · Seine-Saint-DenisDuring the papal schism of 1129–1130, Suger and Bernard worked together to secure the support of Louis VI and the French church for Innocent II; meanwhile he continued preparing plans for the expansion of the church at Saint-Denis, accumulating funds and blueprints for the Gothic rebuilding of the 1130s and consolidating the religious symbolic status of the Capetian dynastic burial place.