Собор Святого Петра в Женеве: История и Архитектура

the cathedral in Geneva

Saint Pierre Cathedral in Geneva, Switzerland is the principal church of the Reformed Protestant Church of Geneva. Previously it was a Roman Catholic cathedral, having been converted in 1535. It is known as the adopted home church of John Calvin, one of the leaders of the Protestant Reformation. Inside the church is a wooden chair used by Calvin.

Below the cathedral is a modern, well interpreted, and accessible archaeological site that includes a 1st century BC tomb of an ancient Allobrogian chieftain. An oppidum erected on the hill of Saint Pierre allowed them to control the inland navigation on the Rhône. Although this has been the site of a cathedral (a church that is the seat of a bishop) since the fourth century, the present building was begun under Arducius de Faucigny, the prince bishop of the Diocese of Geneva, around 1160, in Gothic style. The interior of the cathedral is lined with fourth century mosaics. The German painter Konrad Witz painted an altarpiece, the so called St. Peter Altarpiece, for the cathedral in 1444, now in the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire, Geneva, which contains his composition, the Miraculous Draught of Fishes. At the time of the Reformation, the interior of the large, cruciform, late gothic church was stripped of its rood screen, side chapels, and all decorative works of art, except the stained glass, leaving a vast, plain interior that contrasts sharply with the interior of surviving medieval churches that remain Roman Catholic. A Neo Classical main façade was added in the 18th century. a Catholic Mass was to be celebrated in the cathedral as a symbol of ecumenical hospitality. Because of COVID 19, the Catholic Mass was postponed and was celebrated on Saturday, 5 March 2022. On certain nights of the full moon, the cathedral sponsors "The Nocturnes de St Pierre", an opportunity to access the towers for a panoramic view of the surrounding countryside by moonlight.

No. Name  Year  Caster, Gussort Diameter (mm) Mass (kg) Strike tone   Tower   1 La Clémence 1902 H. Rüetschi, Aarau 2190 6238 g0 North 2 L'Accord 1845 S. Treboux, Vevey 1560 2080 c1 South 3 La Bellerive 1473 Nicolas Guerci 1400 1500 e1 North 4 La Collavine 1609 1140 1012 g1 South 5 L'Espérance 2002 H. Rüetschi, Aarau 930 475 a1 South 6 L'Eveil 1845 S. Treboux, Vevey 750 261 c2 South 7 Le Rappel 15th century 590 133 e2 South La Cloche des Heures 1460 1290 1610 e1 Spire Le Tocsin 1509 760 270 cis2 South