Geneva Cathedral

Geneva Cathedral, or Saint-Pierre Cathedral, was founded in 1160 in the Romanesque style, on a former 4th-century cathedral. In 1535, with the Reformation, the statues and furniture of the cathedral were destroyed. The cathedral then became Protestant. Subsequently, John Calvin (1509-1564) worked for 23 years as a preacher in the reformed cathedral. The cathedral was built in the Gothic style at the end of the 17th century and was enlarged in the 18th century with a columned portico in the classical style in front of the main façade.

About this building

Key Features

  • Architecture
  • Monuments
  • Links to national heritage
  • Famous people or stories

Visitors information

  • Bus stop within 100m
  • Café within 500m

Other nearby buildings

Wikimedia Commons/Chabe01

Calvin Auditory

The Calvin Auditory is a Protestant chapel, originally a Catholic place of worship under the name Chapelle Notre-Dame-la-Neuve, which was built in the 15th century as a Marian church on the site of shrines dating from the 5th century and originally dedicated to Notre-Dame. In 1536, with the advent of the Reformation in Geneva, Calvin desacralised it and transformed it into an auditorium, where he preached his Reformed theology. The auditorium was also used by the Scottish reformer John Knox during his stay in Geneva in the 1550s.

Wikimedia Commons/Gfuerst

Russian Church

The Russian Church of Geneva, officially called the Cathedral of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, is a Russian Revival style Orthodox church built between 1863 and 1866 and enlarged in 1916. It was initially built for the small Russian diaspora.

Wikimedia Commons

Beth-Yaacov Synagogue

The Beth-Yaacov Synagogue in Geneva was built between 1857 and 1859 in the neo-Moorish style. It was the first synagogue to be built in the city. The architect Johann Heinrich Bachofen had to undertake study trips abroad for its construction because Switzerland did not have any synagogues with very distinctive features. Thus, the synagogue facade is a reproduction of the facade of the synagogue in Heidenheim.