One of the oldest cathedral buildings in Europe, it was constructed as the royal chapel of the Palace of Aachen of Emperor Charlemagne , who was buried there in From to , the original Palatine Chapel saw the coronation of thirty-one German kings and twelve queens.
Later, much expanded, it was a minster and collegiate church , becoming a cathedral briefly from to , and again in when the Diocese of Aachen was revived. The cathedral mostly uses two distinct architectural styles. First, the core of the cathedral is the Carolingian - Romanesque Palatine Chapel, which was modeled after the Basilica of San Vitale at Ravenna and is notably small in comparison to the later additions.
Secondly, the choir was constructed in the Gothic style. Charlemagne began the construction of the Palatine Chapel around , [ 5 ] along with the rest of the palace structures.
The exact date of completion is unclear; however, a letter from Alcuin , in , states that it was nearing completion, and in , Pope Leo III consecrated the finished chapel. It was restored again in , [ 9 ] when the Baroque stucco was removed.
During World War II , Aachen, including its famed cathedral, was heavily damaged by Allied bombing attacks and artillery fire, and the subsequent ground fighting when U.
