Church of Saint-Pierre

This first-rate historical building in Toulouse reveals an exciting and unprecedented chronological stratification in a place that is today dedicated to music and dance. The descent of a few steps takes the visitor back in time to the 4th century or the beginning of the following century.
While the bishopric of Toulouse was being formed and established to the east of the city, a first church, with a funerary vocation, was built in the heart of a necropolis, to the north, on the banks of the Garonne. With a length of 30 meters, it was to have dimensions comparable to those of the first church Saint-Sernin, contemporary. At the end of Antiquity, people used to gather in this church to commemorate the deceased, whose tombs invaded the whole surrounding area and even the heart of the nave.

The construction of the church began in 1602; the Carthusian brothers, driven out of the Carthusian monastery of Notre-Dame de Bellevue de Saïx (near Castres) by the Protestants, decided to build a monastery within the walls of Toulouse. After the fall of the first dome in 1609, the building was raised. The church was consecrated by Cardinal François de Sourdis on 20 May 1612. After the Revolution, the monks are expelled and the convent is transformed into an arsenal. Only the church, the former pharmacy, parts of the hotel (including a remarkable brick exterior corridor) and part of the cloister remain today. In 2001, the shock wave caused by the explosion of the AZF factory in the south of the town shook the walls of the church, forcing reinforcement work to be carried out. Some superficial cracks due to this episode are still visible. The church was first of all dedicated to the Virgin and to Saint Paul of Thebes, one of the first hermits and an important figure for the Carthusian monks.

The Saint-Sernin basilica of Toulouse is a sanctuary built in the 11th century, and was one of the most important pilgrimage centers in Europe. As an abbey (until the French Revolution), it was served by a canonical community. Saint-Sernin is one of the largest Romanesque churches preserved in Europe, with the Speyer Cathedral in Germany. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998.