A church at the site of current Basilica of San Maurizio is documented since 1078, when the bishop of Turin, Cuniberto, acknowledges the donation of this and other churches to a monastery in Pinerolo.
The documents also refer to an arduous major reconstruction starting in the 1440s and completed sometime in the early 17th century, when the nave was finally roofed. The new church was reconsecrated in 1635. Sometime around 1665, damage to the church was caused by lightning strike, but even more dramatic an explosion near the monastery of St Clare in Pinerolo killed 400 townsfolk, who were initially brought to the church awaiting burial. The mass of cadavers led to a closure of the church. In 1691, the church was used to store grain in expectation of a siege of the town. Some damage occurred to the church during a siege two years later.
The bell-tower, dating 1336, was built in a Romanesque style. The interior of the church contains frescoes depicting the Ascension of Christ by Giuseppe Antonio Petrini and the main altarpiece canvas depicting the Birth of the Virgin by Claudio Francesco Beaumont. The church was again restored in 1897, including frescoes by Gabriele Ferrero. The church has numerous side chapels. It was raised to a minor basilica in 2002.
References:Celje Castle was once the largest fortification on Slovenian territory. The first fortified building on the site (a Romanesque palace) was built in the first half of the 13th century by the Counts of Heunburg from Carinthia on the stony outcrop on the western side of the ridge where the castle stands. It had five sides, or four plus the southern side, which was a natural defence. The first written records of the castle date back to between 1125 and 1137; it was probably built by Count Gunter. In the western section of the castle, there was a building with several floors. Remains of the walls of this palatium have survived. In the eastern section, there was an enclosed courtyard with large water reservoirs. The eastern wall, which protects the castle from its most exposed side, was around three metres thicker than the rest of the curtain wall. The wall was topped with a parapet and protected walkway.