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A little history of St-Pierre and St-Paul cathedral in Nantes

The chevet | Florestan / CC-BY
Cathedral St-Pierre-St-Paul cathedral in Nantes

Did you know the nave of the cathedral of Nantes (37 metres) is higher than Our-Lady of Paris' one?

The first bishop of Nantes was called saint Clar and he raised a former church in the 3th century.

Destroyed by Normans, the building was completely rebuilt in 939 by Alain Barbe-Torte, who expelled those barbarians from the city.

A first alteration came in the 12th century then duke Jean VI entirely rebuilt it in 1434: the old chevet was kept. In 1473, they finished the Western porch.

But in 1525, they hadn't enough money to go on the building work: Nantes asked money to pope Adrian VI...

In the 16th century, there was a small cemetery around the cathedral, surrounded by a simple little wall.

They extended this wall in 1592 and in 1611, then demolished it: they fit a square instead and raised a column with blazons of king of France and of Nantes city. In short, in 1628, they started to build nave's vaults.

Finally, the cathedral was finished in 1891, with its inauguration: a construction which took 5 centuries...

About the the author

Vinaigrette
I'm fond of strolls and History, with juicy and spicy details!