Saint-Nicolas de Ciney
Saint-Nicolas de Ciney ( French "Collégiale Saint-Nicolas" , Dutch "Sint-Niklaaskerk" , Walloon "Colégiale Sint-Nicolê" ) is a collegiate church in the Belgian city of Ciney in the province of Namur .
History and architecture
The church is located in the center of Ciney on Place Monseu . It is the most imposing historical building in the Condroz region . A church building was erected here for the first time in 816, which was named Collégiale Notre-Dame ("Collegiate Church of Our Lady") and belonged to a chapter of the canons . The monastery was dissolved as a result of the French Revolution - Ciney was part of France at the time, Belgium did not yet exist - and in 1796 the church was rebuilt after St. Nicholas renamed St. Nicole .
The current building consists of parts and style elements that originate from various buildings, extensions and conversions from the 11th to the 19th century. The Romanesque tower is the oldest part of the building still in existence and, with its mighty walls, probably originally served as a defense tower . In the so-called Cow War (1275–1278) Ciney was besieged and the church burned down. Only the tower remained standing. A few years later a new nave was built. In 1619 this part of the church was rebuilt. In 1843 the whole church was significantly rebuilt. In 2010, the roof of the church collapsed in a storm, and the steeple also lost its top.
Web links
- Collégiale St Nicolas on Ciney virtuel (French)
- Indoor and outdoor shots on Ciney virtuel (French)
- La Collégiale Notre-Dame - the buildings on Place Monseu on the official website of the city of Ciney (French)
Coordinates: 50 ° 17 ′ 48 ″ N , 5 ° 6 ′ 3 ″ E