Basilica in Saint Nicolas de Port

When you arrive near Saint Nicolas de Port, you can't miss it. Such a high building amongst small houses. You can see it from far away but we are so used to it that regularly we drive on the roads around without noticing the basilica.

It was built between 1481 and 1545 and its style is called flamboyant gothic. The outside is full of detailed ornaments, and full of gargoyles too (one day I'll write about gargoyles). In 1635 part of the basilica was destroyed by a big fire when the "Swedish" soldiers invaded Lorraine. Legend has it that a priest was finishing to celebrate Mass when he heard soldiers killing the other priests, he took the chalice and host and went behind a big pillar to hide. He was leaning strongly against it when it half-opened and the priest went inside ! The soldiers saw this, tried to break the pillar but the stone was becoming harder and harder. The priest is still inside this pillar, you can hear his voice when big disasters are happening in the area, and the pillar cries, big drops, when bad events are near.

As you can imagine a lot of money is necessary to repair such a big old place. For a very long time there was not enough and only what was absolutely necessary was done. But in the 1980s a miracle happened. A French woman, Camille Croué-Friedman, who had lived near the basilica and married an American man, died in New York. In her will it was written that she wanted to give several millions of dollars to maintain the old building. And till nowadays this money is used to work oustide and inside the basilica.

I'll have to show you the inside later, impressing and beautiful.