The abbey of Saint-Ouen was one of the most powerful abbeys in Normandy. Its gothic abbey church (abbatiale) is as large and impressive as many cathedrals. It is less ornate, though, and it lacks the side chapels that wealthy lay donors paid to install in cathedrals. The western façade was left unfinished until the nineteenth century, when it was recreated according to nineteenth-century ideals of medieval architecture.