Soissons - Saint-Gervais-et-Saint-Protais

The construction of the "Cathédrale Saint-Gervais-et-Saint-Protais" was begun about 1177, replacing a preceding Carolingian church, that was set on fire by soldiers of Hugh the Great, Hugh Capet´s father, in 948. The choir was completed in 1211, but work slowed down due to the Hundred Years' War. he cathedral got finally consecrated in 1479.

It got looted and vandalized during the Wars of Religion, when the Huguenots had occupied Soissons. Rebuilt again, but then severely mutilated by revolutionists end of the 18th century. During the time of Napoleon I, gunpowder was stored inside, what ended in an explosion. A "historic monument" since 1862, the structure was severely damaged again by shell fire during WWI.

The northern tower was never completed, due to lack of funds. None of the many statues has survived the vandalism of the centuries. The facade actually has strong parallels to that one of Notre-Dame de Paris, where all lost and destroyed statues got replaced in the 19th century.