St. Andrew's Church is a neo-Gothic parish church in central Bayonne. The church was designed by architects Hippolyte Durand and Hippolyte Guichenné and built in the neo-Gothic style between 1856 and 1869, under Napoléon III's reign. It was built on the site of a former Jansenist high school. Its construction was mainly funded by a bequest from banker Jacques Taurin de Lormand, who died in 1847. The town council allocated additional money for ending the works and purchasing furniture. The church was consecrated on March 7, 1862. The Capuchins' Church neighboring St Andrew's was demolished.
On December 13, 1895, the vault partly collapsed on the organ lofts because the ground was swampy. The 74-meter-high spires, which were too heavy, were demolished in 1901 and replaced by the two current belfry towers in 1903.
In the shape of a Latin cross, the church's design was inspired from the 13th-century Gothic churches with two front towers and an imposing rosette over the doors. It has three ribbed naves.
The inside of the church features a painting by Léon Bonnat (1833-1922) of Bayonne, which represents the Assumption of Mary. Another painting by Joseph Pascau (1875-1944) of Bayonne shows the Holy Family. The pipe organ was donated by Napoléon III in 1862 and inaugurated on April 9, 1836.
References:The Beckov castle stands on a steep 50 m tall rock in the village Beckov. The dominance of the rock and impression of invincibility it gaves, challenged our ancestors to make use of these assets. The result is a remarkable harmony between the natural setting and architecture.
The castle first mentioned in 1200 was originally owned by the King and later, at the end of the 13th century it fell in hands of Matúš Èák. Its owners alternated - at the end of the 14th century the family of Stibor of Stiborice bought it.
The next owners, the Bánffys who adapted the Gothic castle to the Renaissance residence, improved its fortifications preventing the Turks from conquering it at the end of the 16th century. When Bánffys died out, the castle was owned by several noble families. It fell in decay after fire in 1729.
The history of the castle is the subject of different legends.