Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption

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Temporarily closed – In 1685, Louis XIV decided to build a gigantic cathedral to assert his power and mark the victory of the Catholic religion.

Built at the highest point of the city and partly built in white stone, the cathedral symbolizes the all-powerful Catholic monarchy on the former rebel city … The work of Catholic reconquest on the Protestant city culminated in 1692 with the laying of the first stone of Notre-Dame Cathedral, a masterpiece of classical architecture. And to make room for it, we do not hesitate to remove whole blocks of houses, to split in two sections the street of Soubirous and to clear a vast forecourt on the Place des Nonnains (today Franklin Roosevelt) Consecrated in 1739, it is the work of three royal architects: François d’Orbay, Jules Hardouin-Mansart and Robert de Cotte. The classical facade bears the statues of the four evangelists, dominated by the king’s arms inscribed on the pediment. The interior reveals a building with harmonious lines, enhanced by a delicate dome on pendants.The cathedral houses remarkable furniture: stalls (eighteenth), carved walnut organ (seventeenth) and a Napoleon III style baldachin. In the north arm of the transept is one of Ingres’ major works, the Vow of Louis XIII (1824). The interior of the cathedral breaks strongly with the aesthetics of the Saint Jacques church: the high windows flood the nave with lights. The cathedral is home to exceptional furniture, including a 17th century walnut organ, a 18th century pulpit and a 19th century Napoleon III canopy. In 2010, a treasure is set up by the State in the great sacristy, opened during some visits proposed by the Heritage Center.

OPENING HOURS indicative :
Monday to Saturday from 8h to 19h and Sunday from 10h to 19h (Sunday religious office at 11am)

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