Église Saint-Polycarpe, Lyon, France

The Église Saint-Polycarpe (Church of St. Polycarp) is the oldest church of the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri. The church, built by the Oratorians installed on the slopes, was completed in 1670, with the exception of the façade that was built in 1756 by architect Toussaint Loyer who also lengthened the nave.

On 19 June 1791, the Oratory Church became a parish church and took the name of St. Polycarp, as a tribute to Polycarp of Smyrna, master of Saint Pothinus and Irenaeus, who were the first two bishops of Lyon. The church has a famous organ, built by Augustine Zeiger in 1841.

The church has a facade decorated with four Corinthian pilasters topped by a triangular pediment. Louis Janmot made the painting depicting the Last Supper which is placed in the apse.

References:

Wikipedia

Religious sites in France

User Reviews

Florence Falconnet (2 years ago)
Church of the canuts whose choir was dug into the hill. Holds the heart of Pauline Jaricot and that of Abbé Gourdiat. Pauline Jaricot's body is in the Saint Nizier church. TO VISIT, especially if you are interested in the period of the 19th century.

Tiger Chan (2 years ago)
Old quaint church

thierry lasnier (4 years ago)

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Göran Höglund (Kartläsarn)

Historic Site of the week

Varberg Fortress

Varberg Fortress was built in 1287-1300 by count Jacob Nielsen as protection against his Danish king, who had declared him an outlaw after the murder of King Eric V of Denmark. Jacob had close connections with king Eric II of Norway and as a result got substantial Norwegian assistance with the construction. The fortress, as well as half the county, became Norwegian in 1305.

King Eric's grand daughter, Ingeborg Håkansdotter, inherited the area from her father, King Haakon V of Norway. She and her husband, Eric, Duke of Södermanland, established a semi-independent state out of their Norwegian, Swedish and Danish counties until the death of Erik. They spent considerable time at the fortress. Their son, King Magnus IV of Sweden (Magnus VII of Norway), spent much time at the fortress as well.

The fortress was augmented during the late 16th and early 17th century on order by King Christian IV of Denmark. However, after the Treaty of Brömsebro in 1645 the fortress became Swedish. It was used as a military installation until 1830 and as a prison from the end of the 17th Century until 1931.

It is currently used as a museum and bed and breakfast as well as private accommodation. The moat of the fortress is said to be inhabited by a small lake monster. In August 2006, a couple of witnesses claimed to have seen the monster emerge from the dark water and devour a duck. The creature is described as brown, hairless and with a 40 cm long tail.

Do you know an ancient castle or magnificent church near you?

Why not share it with other people interested in history? You can add your own historic sites and attractions to SpottingHistory.com.

It's absolutely free, easy, and doesn't even need registration!

Upload data

Église Saint-Polycarpe

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Landmarks of Sicily

Rhodes, The Island of Knights

Great Spa Towns of Europe

Historic Site of the week

Varberg Fortress

Looks like you are a history fan!