King Louis IX of France was born in Poissy on 25 April 1214 to Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile. On 29 November 1226, he was crowned in the Reims Cathedral but remained under the guardianship of his mother until he came of age. A skilled reformer, he reduced the power of the feudal lords and promoted the building of many churches. His reign was inspired by Christian values: he helped the weak and committed himself to the conversion to the Christian religion. He took part in the seventh crusade and left again for the eighth, where he died in Tunis in August 1270. He was canonised under the name of St. Louis of the French in 1297 by Pope Boniface VIII.
