Rodez Cathedral (Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rodez) is a national monument and is the seat of the Bishopric of Rodez. The closed west front once formed part of the city wall of Rodez.
Rodez was Christianized in the 4th-5th century AD, and the first mention of a cathedral dates from around 516. This structure was rebuilt c. 1000; almost nothing remains of it after the decision to rebuild it from scratch in 1276.
The works were halted for many years by the Black Death and the Hundred Years War, and were restarted only in the early 15th century with the completion of the choir and its vault, as well as the transept and of the first sectors of the nave. After the fire of 1510, bishop François d'Estaing had it rebuilt in 1513-1526 under the direction of Antoine Salvan with a new majestic bell tower. The cathedral was completed around 1531.
In 1792–98, Pierre Méchain and Jean-Baptiste Delambre used Rodez Cathedral as the central surveying point for their calculation of the circumference of the earth. This was used in the definition of the metre.
Despite the long construction process, the cathedral is characterized by a remarkable unity of style, which is mostly the Gothic one imported by architect Jean Deschamps into the Midi from northern France.
The cathedral is constructed of red sandstone. It has a severe façade, flanked by two sturdy towers, which betray its defensive function: the west front once formed part of the city walls of Rodez. The belltower, standing at 87 m, is surmounted by a lantern carrying the statue of the Virgin with a choir of four angels.
References:The Petersberg Citadel is one of the largest extant early-modern citadels in Europe and covers the whole north-western part of the Erfurt city centre. It was built after 1665 on Petersberg hill and was in military use until 1963. It dates from a time when Erfurt was ruled by the Electors of Mainz and is a unique example of the European style of fortress construction. Beneath the citadel is an underground maze of passageways that can be visited on guided tours organised by Erfurt Tourist Office.
The citadel was originally built on the site of a medieval Benedictine Monastery and the earliest parts of the complex date from the 12th century. Erfurt has also been ruled by Sweden, Prussia, Napoleon, the German Empire, the Nazis, and post-World War II Soviet occupying forces, and it was part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). All of these regimes used Petersberg Citadel and had an influence on its development. The baroque fortress was in military use until 1963. Since German reunification in 1990, the citadel has undergone significant restoration and it is now open to the public as a historic site.