Notre-Dame du Valentin church

The Catholic form of worship, abolished in Lausanne in 1536, was to be celebrated in private homes from 1798, then from 1812 in the new temple de la Mercerie, with other denominations. Dissatisfied Catholics arranged for a church to be built on Avenue de l'Université; a landslide caused irreparable damage before it could be completed. The architect Henri Perregaux oversaw the construction of a new building in 1832. The Notre-Dame du Valentin church was therefore the first Catholic church built in Lausanne since the Reformation. In 1992, it was raised to the status of a basilica by Pope John-Paul II. It is the largest of the ten Catholic sanctuaries in the city.

The neo-classical element is dominant. In 1932, the first restoration by the architect F. Dumas rendered it more urbane through its opulence, its imposing staircase and its 38-metre tower. In particular, the magnificent fresco painted by the Italian artist Gino Severini (1883-1966), an internationally renowned futurist/Cubist painter is not to be missed.

Organised tours with Lausanne MDA tour guides available on request.

Severini fresco - © DR