It is in Reims Cathedral that the kings of France have chosen to be sacred since the Merovingians. The tradition tells that the Chrism was brought by a dove for the baptism of Clovis, the first king to be crowned there. The sovereigns insured their divine legitimacy by receiving it by unction. Throughout France's history, 31 kings walked the cathedral's alley to the altar, to the right of which stands a throne. With its roof's ridges adorned with alternating shamrocks and golden lilies, Reims Cathedral is typical of Flamboyant Gothic architecture.