Cathédrale Saint-Cyr-et-Sainte-Julitte de Nevers

Nevers

In the heart of Nevers, an unusual cathedral has the distinction, unique in France, of aligning two opposed choirs, one Romanesque facing west, the other Gothic facing east — the trace of a rebuilding never carried through to completion. Legend tells that Charlemagne, pursued in a dream by a wild boar, was saved by a half-naked child who turned out to be Saint Cyr; Bishop Jerome then had the relics of the young martyr and of his mother Julitta brought here to consecrate, in the early 9th century, a building already steeped in history. Ravaged by fires in 1211, 1228 and then 1308, the cathedral rose again in Flamboyant Gothic under Bishop Guillaume de Saint-Lazare, while the Bohier tower, completed in the 16th century, lifts its 43 statues of saints and patriarchs to 52 metres. In the 20th century, the cathedral found its soul again in light: between 1976 and 2009, six contemporary artists, including Claude Viallat and Gottfried Honegger, recomposed more than a thousand square metres of stained glass, making this great site one of the most singular sanctuaries of France.

Getting there : Cathedral open every day, free admission

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound