Tournai Cathedral

Notre-Dame Cathedral, founded in the 12th century, is a masterpiece of Scaldian Gothic, a mixture of Romanesque and Gothic styles. It was in the 5th century that the first cathedral was built under the aegis of Saint Eleutheran, one of the first bishops of the city. From the 9th to the 11th century, a new sanctuary was built. At the beginning of the 12th century, the development of the cult of Our Lady, the prosperity of the city and perhaps the desire to hasten the separation of the dioceses of Tournai and Noyon, led to the construction of the present cathedral, the third. Since 2000, the cathedral has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

About this building

Key Features

  • Architecture
  • Monuments
  • Links to national heritage

Visitors information

  • Bus stop within 100m
  • Café within 500m

Other nearby buildings

Sauvegarde de l'Art Français
Bell tower on a sunny day

Church of Saint-Martin

The church of Saint Martin Flines-lez-Mortagne, in the northern department, dates from the eleventh or twelfth century, but was largely rebuilt in the fourteenth century. Its imposing bell-tower contains both Romanesque and Gothic elements. The interior of the building is richly decorated with statues and medallions with biblical themes.

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Church of Saint-Laurent, Aix-en-Pévèle

The parish church St Laurent of Aix-Lez-Orchies is located in the region of Hauts de France. Originally a chapel of a 10th century feudal castle , it is erected on a former Gallo-Roman site. Over the centuries, many improvements were made to this Romanesque building, whose orientation was reversed in the eighteenth century by the addition of a choir. This profound change did not alter the character or unity of the building.

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Church of Saint-Vaast

Saint-Vaast Church is located in Landas, in the Hauts-de-France region. The first church, a Romanesque building from the tenth-eleventh century was associated with the cathedral of Tournai and the abbey of Flines. Rectangular in plan, the building includes three vessels of five bays. It is preceded by a brick belfry tower which houses the oldest bell in France (1285) still in operation. Inside you can admire an organ with 784 pipes dating from 1894.