Carcassonne Cathedral

Carcassonne, France

Carcassonne Cathedral was built in the 13th century as a parish church, dedicated to Saint Michael. Following war damage in the 14th century it was rebuilt as a fortified church. In 1803 St. Michael's was elevated to cathedral status, replacing the earlier cathedral dedicated to Saints Nazarius and Celsus, now the Basilica of St. Nazaire and St. Celse.

The cathedral plan is characterised by its relative simplicity. It forms a single nave with a 20 metre high vault, lined with several lateral chapels. The chior screen has retained its 14th century stained glass. The sober façade has a single decorative feature in the form of a large rosette 8 meters in diameter, and the adjoining bell tower is relatively massive.

References:

Comments

Your name



Details

Founded: 14th century
Category: Religious sites in France
Historical period: Valois Dynasty and Hundred Year's War (France)

Rating

4.4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

MrsWayfarer (15 months ago)
We attended Sunday mass here and it was very solemn. I liked how the stained glass provided the church different light shades. Nice church for quiet contemplation and prayer.
James Parker (2 years ago)
Gothic churches are cool. Gothic fashion, not so much.
Marie Holm, PhD (2 years ago)
Impressive cathedral, with looming ambiance and sparkles of light shining through the stained glass. Only downside for the moment is the maintenance work around it, but once done the paths will be smooth and such.
viv Ketchen (4 years ago)
Just a beautiful serene place.
Nancy Fink (4 years ago)
Beautiful Romanesque cathedral with low door. Painting of walls and columns a la Middle Ages is superb. Early Gothic additions near altar shows changes as church got bigger.
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

La Hougue Bie

La Hougue Bie is a Neolithic ritual site which was in use around 3500 BC. Hougue is a Jèrriais/Norman language word meaning a \'mound\' and comes from the Old Norse word haugr. The site consists of 18.6m long passage chamber covered by a 12.2m high mound. The site was first excavated in 1925 by the Société Jersiaise. Fragments of twenty vase supports were found along with the scattered remains of at least eight individuals. Gravegoods, mostly pottery, were also present. At some time in the past, the site had evidently been entered and ransacked.

In Western Europe, it is one of the largest and best preserved passage graves and the most impressive and best preserved monument of Armorican Passage Grave group. Although they are termed \'passage graves\', they were ceremonial sites, whose function was more similar to churches or cathedrals, where burials were incidental.