EUROPEAN CATHEDRALS: BASEL CATHEDRAL

First stop on our vacation this past summer was Basel, Switzerland. A great city to explore with a variety of things to see to keep everyone in the family entertained. We explored the Basel Cathedral. For a small fee you can climb the towers. It's a tight squeeze and once you are at the top and outside walking along the narrow walkway the view and the height can take your breath away.

Also known as Basel Munster. The original crypt is found to have been constructed around 1020. A tower was erected at the end of the 11th century. Part of this original tower still exists today (see photo below).

What stands today was completed in 1225. Fire damaged the church in the late 13th century. An earthquake hit the area in 1356 and destroyed the 5 towers of the church, the choir, and various vaults. Seven years later the damaged cathedral was rebuilt. Extensions continued throughout the 1400s. The 1500s saw more additions with the major and minor cloisters. Finally, construction halted until the restorations took place in the mid-1800s and more renovations in the mid-20th century.

Protestant Reformation violence in the mid-1500s saw major damage done to much of the religious artifacts in the cathedral. Since that time the church has been part of the Swiss Reformed Church. Although Switzerland does recognize separation of Church & State, the city of Basel pays for 3/4 of the maintenance costs.