Noyon Cathedral

Noyon Cathedral (French: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Noyon; Picard: Cathédrale Noter-Danme ed Noéyon) is a Roman Catholic church and former cathedral, located in Noyon, France. It was formerly the seat of the Bishopric of Noyon, which was abolished by the Concordat of 1801 and merged into the Diocese of Beauvais. Constructed between 1145-1230, the Noyon Cathedral is considered to be one of the earliest true Gothic cathedrals built in France and has been listed as a Monument historique since 1840. The cathedral hosted a number of royal coronations, including Charlemagne and Hugh Capet, and later became the baptismal church of the Protestant reformer John Calvin. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, its architectural significance attracted the attention of prominent French artists and architects such as Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, and Auguste Rodin.

History

Early History

The origins of the cathedral date as early as the 5th century, when Bishop Medardus moved his diocese seat from Vermand to Noyon to avoid ongoing conflicts between the Merovingian Franks and Burgundians, and constructed a small wooden chapel in the fortified Roman castrum. The church survived Germanic raids coinciding with the Fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, but was left neglected for over 200 years following the transition to Merovingian power. Destroyed by fire in 676, the church was rebuilt and upgraded relatively quickly in Romanesque style and would later host the crowning of Charlemagne in 768. Following a second looting and destruction by Normans in 859, the cathedral was rebuilt and extended again as a Carolingian basilica in 882, according to Flodoard, and would host the crowning of Hugh Capet in 987 as the first Capetian monarch.

Middle ages-17th century

The Carolingian church was destroyed by fire in 1131, and construction of the current Gothic cathedral was ordered by Simon of Vermandois and Bishop Baudouin II, likely beginning shortly afterwards in 1145, as concluded by Ludovic Vitet and Eugène Viollet-le-Duc.