Basilica of Our Lady of Geneva

Geneva, Switzerland

The Basilica Notre-Dame of Geneva is the main Roman Catholic church in Geneva. The church was built according to the design of Alexandre Grigny between 1852 and 1857 on the site of a former stronghold fortifications. This neo-Gothic building, whose appearance is partly inspired by the Beauvais Cathedral, could break ground thanks to the city of Geneva, which had ceded land to religious communities to build places of worship, and through donations and manual labor provided by the Geneva Catholics.

After the coming to power of an anti-clerical government, Notre Dame was occupied on June 5, 1875 and closed. This occupation is accompanied by a protest against the Roman Catholic and more unrests. The commitment of Catholics to this sanctuary becomes even greater. Notre-Dame was bought by the Catholic Church in 1911–1912.

On December 5, 1954, Bishop François Charrière, diocesan bishop, pronounced in the name of Pope Pius XII the elevation of the shrine to the rank of minor basilica.

The oldest art works of the basilica date back to the time immediately preceding the Protestant Reformation like a carved wood panel with bas-relief image of the Virgin Mary, mutilated with an ax by Protestants.

The stained glass windows of the basilica are particularly remarkable. Some are semi-industrial production neo-gothic, but most show the evolution of the art of stained glass during the twentieth century, in various styles, after those of Claudius Lavergne (installed from 1857 to 1875).

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Details

Founded: 1852-1857
Category: Religious sites in Switzerland

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.7/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Peter Monge (15 months ago)
Beautiful church. Live organ playing to set the energy right. Peaceful. The only downfall were the aggressive homeless ppl asking for haircuts, burgers, lunch, etc…
Lisa Chan (16 months ago)
This is a beautiful church. The inside is much more ornate and stunning compared to the St Pierre cathedral in the center of the old city. The ceilings, paintings and the stained glass windows are amazing. Definitely worth the visit.
Jessica Bachansingh (20 months ago)
Beautiful church for an evening mass. Wonderful music
Trevor Sportsman (2 years ago)
Old and beautiful church, holy place to calm for a while, the organist plays the organ wonderfully! The Polish accent - Our Lady of Czestochowa (in the stained glass).
Himanshu Jain (2 years ago)
Huge church built in 16th century. Felt spiritual and was mesmerising. The glass windows were coloured and superb designs. The roof had paintings. The atmosphere was just so quite.
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