Elne Cathedral, Elne, France

The Romanesque style Elne Cathedral was consecrated in 1069. In 1285, during the Aragonese Crusade, French troops sacked the town and massacred the townspeople who had taken refuge in the cathedral.

Work began on rebuilding the cathedral in the 14th century but was never finished, which explains the irregular appearance of the main facade - the tower on the right was built at this time but not the tower on the left, so a much smaller tower was added later instead. The cathedral is notable for the lack of decorative stonework on the outside.

The cloisters were also built over the course of three hundred years, which explains why some parts are more ornamented than others - despite this the closters are very beautiful, with marble arches featuring interesting capital stones surrounding a nicely maintained garden. The cloisters now also contain a Museum of History and a Museum of Archaeology.

References:

francethisway.com

Celje Castle

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.

Amer Alhaj (4 years ago)
Top

Jesus E. Gabaldon (4 years ago)
Wonderful romanic building and excellent tour and service. Worth the trip...

Kitty Dee (4 years ago)
Historic, many stories to this town.

Giuseppe Mennella (5 years ago)
One of marvellous romanic style church in the Eastern Pyrenees. In the church there are some Retablos and the cloister is very nice

Eleanor C. (5 years ago)
Wonderfil views Pleasant parking nearby

Elne Cathedral

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Historic Site of the week

Celje Castle