Explore Religious Heritage Across Europe

Place of pilgrimage to Saint Jean-François Régis and Saint Thérèse Couderc, the village of Lalouvesc is famous for its neo-Byzantine style basilica dedicated to Saint Régis, built in the 19th century by the architect of Notre-Dame de Fourvière de Lyon, Pierre Bossan. Inside, the paintings in the choir retrace the history of the pilgrimage, the stained glass windows illustrate the life of Saint Jean-François Régis, and a shrine contains the relics of the saint.

The basilica of Saint-Martin d'Ainay is an old abbey church of Romanesque style built in the 12th century. The basilica is classified as a historical monument since 1840.

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.

The Basilica of Sainte-Clotilde is one of the five minor basilicas of Paris. Before its construction from 1846 to 1857, the church of Saint Valère stood, formerly the chapel of a monastery dissolved in 1790. The architects of the church, François-Christian Gau (until 1854) and Théodore Ballu, designed with Sainte-Clotilde what is considered to be the first neo-Gothic style church in Europe.

The Basilica of Saints Boniface and Alexis was built between the 4th and 5th centuries. In 1216, Pope Honorius III (1216-1227) ordered the reconstruction of the complex; the restoration of 1582 was followed by the reconstruction of Tommaso De Marchis in the 1750s and the reconstruction by Somaschi from 1852 to 1860. The modern church retains elements from all these periods. The bell tower is Romanesque, some columns from the church of Honorius are present in the eastern apse of the modern church, the portico is medieval; the 16th-century façade, reworked by De Marchis, highlights the medieval portico.

The Basilica of Saints John and Paul was first erected in 398. This original church was damaged during the sack of Rome (410), then by an earthquake in 442 and was finally sacked by the Normans in 1084. The building was continually remodelled from the 11th century onwards and the building had its present appearance in 1951 when Cardinal Franz Joseph Spellman had its early Christian façade restored.

This church was built between the 9th and 14th centuries, completed in 1330. The building was renovated in the 19th century under the direction of Viollet-le-Duc. It offers a clever mix of Gothic architecture and Romanesque architecture. Its prominence in the landscape of the medieval walls earned it the nickname "Jewel of the City".

The church, formerly a cathedral, was consecrated in 1096 by Urbain II, although it was not completed. The nave dates from this Romanesque period. The construction of the transepts was completed in the 13th century, when the choir was also built, and its roundabout was added in the 14th century. The Romanesque portal was completely rebuilt in the 19th century during the restoration of Viollet-le-Duc.

The Basilica of Saints Sylvester and Martin ai Monti was founded by Sylvester I (314-335) and the preparatory meeting for the first Council of Nicaea was held there in 324. In 500, 772 and 845 the church was rebuilt. The structure of the present church, modified by Filippo Gagliardi in the 17th century, takes up that of the old church and many parts were reused. The church was entrusted for centuries to the Carmelite monks of the ancient observance.

The Basilica of San Bartolomeo all'Isola was built around the year 1000 to house the relics of the apostle Saint Bartholomew. The Basilica of St. Bartholomew is today the place of commemoration of the "new martyrs" of the twentieth century: to mention just a few examples, the basilica celebrates Bishop Óscar Arnulfo Romero and Cardinal Juan Jesús Posadas Ocampo, killed by drug traffickers, the evangelical pastor Paul Schneider and farmer Franz Jägerstätter, opponents of Nazism.