Basilica sights in Europe
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A
Basilique St-Rémi
This 121m-long former Benedictine abbey church, a Unesco World Heritage Site, mixes Romanesque elements from the mid-11th century (the worn but stunning nave and transept) with early Gothic features from the latter half of the 12th century (the choir, with a large triforium gallery and, way up top, tiny clerestory windows). It is named in honour of Bishop Remigius, who baptised Clovis and 3000 Frankish warriors in 498. The 12th-century-style chandelier has 96 candles, one for each year of the life of St Rémi, whose tomb (in the choir) is marked by a mausoleum from the mid-1600s. The basilica is situated about 1.5km south-southeast of the tourist office; take the Citadine…
reviewed
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Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière
Crowning the hill – with stunning city panoramas from its terrace – the 66m-long, 19m-wide and 27m-high basilica is lined with intricate mosaics and a superb example of late-19th-century French ecclesiastical architecture. One-hour discovery visits take in the main features of the basilica and crypt; rooftop tours climax on the stone-sculpted roof.
reviewed
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C
Basilique du Sacré-Cœur
Crowning the Butte de Montmartre (Montmartre Hill), Sacred Heart Basilica was built from contributions pledged by Parisian Catholics as an act of contrition after the humiliating Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71. Construction began in 1876, but the basilica was not consecrated until 1919. In a way, atonement here has never stopped; a perpetual prayer ‘cycle’ that began at the consecration of the Basilica continues round the clock to this day.
Some 234 spiralling steps lead you to the basilica’s dome, which affords one of Paris’ most spectacular panoramas – up to 30km on a clear day. Weighing in at 19 tonnes, the bell called La Savoyarde in the tower above is the…
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