Saint-Nicolas Basilica

You are standing in front of one of the city’s two basilicas. At the end of the 12th century, there was a small chapel, which would grow in size through repeated expansions century after century, along with its Saint-Nicolas cemetery. In 1226, the Duke had a wall built around the area, later, in the 15th century the wall was renovated and the church upgraded. Over the following centuries, enlargements continued following the growth of the population, and finally, in 1844, it was completely rebuilt. It took 15 years alone to build the bell tower! Through all these successive enlargements on a very small plot of land, the basilica found itself squeezed into a north-south orientation, whereas, it should be facing east-west, as every Christian church, with the sun rising over its sanctuary. To cut a long story short, the work was entrusted to Jean Baptiste Lassus, who designed one of the very first neo-Gothic projects in France. At first erected as a minor basilica in 1882, then badly damaged after the city was bombed in September 1943, it was once again rebuilt. Last but not least, it was listed as a historic monument in 1986, paving the way for a well-deserved renovation!