St. Stephen’s Cathedral
An emblematic monument of the city of Toulouse, Saint-Étienne Cathedral stands in the heart of the historic city. Its stones are precious witnesses, telling the story of past centuries.
Atypical cathedral
The general physiognomy of the cathedral results mainly from two campaigns of construction:
- early xiiie century, construction of the Raymondine nave in southern Gothic style, on the remains of the Romanesque cathedral,
- late XIIIe century, construction of the cathedral choir in the Gothic style of the North.
These two campaigns are still visible today, as the curious connection between these two parts shows.
Plan: J.-L. Rebière, CMHA
Time markers
- 844: first mention of a Carolingian church (no visible remains),
- 1071-1105: episcopate of Isarn, construction of the Romanesque cathedral,
- XIIe-XIIIe : destruction of the Romanesque cathedral, construction of the Raymondine nave and the West entrance rose window,
- late XIIIe : reconstruction of the choir in the Gothic style of the North,
- XVe : construction of the West portal,
- XVIIe : arch of the choir after a fire of the wooden roof,
- XIXe : several projects not completed to complete the cathedral,
- XXe : completion of the North Transept with the construction of a pastiche portal of the XVe,
Plan: J.-L. Rebière, CMHA
Building Maintenance
Its preservation is essential to pass on the present heritage to future generations. State-owned monument, the maintenance and repair work is carried out by the Territorial Service of Architecture and Heritage, under the supervision of the architect of the Buildings of France, curator of the cathedral. The restoration works programmed by the Regional Conservation of Historical Monuments and Architecture (CRMHA), are provided by the chief architect of historical monuments (ACMH).
Most of the furniture and interior decorations date from the XVIIIe and XIXe centuries, as well as the wrought iron gates surrounding the sanctuary. The marble columns of Caunes-Minervois (Aude), are copies of those of the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles. The great organ classified as Historical Monuments, date of the XVIIe century for its oldest parts.
Current condition of the cathedral
North façade
Plan: J.-L. Rebière, CMHA
South façade
Plan: J.-L. Rebière, CMHA
West façade
Plan: J.-L. Rebière, CMHA
East façade
Plan: J.-L. Rebière, CMHA
Unfinished XIX Projectse and XXe centuries
The 18the century is marked by works seeking to "finish" the Cathedral of Saint Stephen, wanting to give it an overall coherence. But it was not until the next century that ambitious projects emerged.
1860, the great French architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc undertook sketches and plans to complete the cathedral while preserving the Raymondine nave. He proposes to keep the built parts by “regularizing” the building by building a double nave whose central piles would be focused on the choir.
Léopold Petit, in 1864, drew up the plan for the completion of the cathedral by establishing a nave as it should have been in the 13th century.
The architect Anatole de Baudot will take over the same part of the double nave, with a variant: add a double aisle to the north of the Raymondine nave. This project also led to the remodeling of the west façade, either by slight modifications, or by a symmetrical construction of the existing part.
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