Cathédrale Saint-Apollinaire

The cathedral of Valence stands on a terrace above the Rhône, at the southern end of the old town, and its Romanesque tower and pale stone walls form one of the oldest sights of the Drôme. It is dedicated to Saint Apollinaris, a bishop of Valence in the early sixth century, and it is the oldest monument of the city, protected as a historic monument since 1862. The site has been a place of worship for a very long time, and the building that survives was begun in the late eleventh century. Pope Urban II consecrated the altar in 1095, on his journey through France to preach the First Crusade, which gives the church a place in the story of the Middle Ages.

The architecture is Romanesque of the Rhône valley, a style shaped by Roman models and by the Lombard builders of northern Italy. The building has a broad nave with aisles, a central tower above the crossing and an apse, with plain stone walls decorated with arches and small blind arcades, and its form is solid, sober and well proportioned. Inside, the nave has round arches and pillars, and a calm, cool atmosphere. The church was damaged in the wars of religion in the sixteenth century, when Protestants attacked it, and it was repaired and altered in later centuries, with the tower and parts of the interior changed, and it was restored in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

The cathedral has a poignant link with the French Revolution. In 1799 Pope Pius VI, who had been taken prisoner by French revolutionary forces and brought across France, died in captivity in Valence, and a monument in the cathedral commemorates his stay and his death. Another famous figure is connected with the town. In 1785 and 1786 the young Napoleon Bonaparte was posted here as a junior artillery officer, and he lived in Valence for more than a year, an episode the town still recalls.

Opening hours of the cathedral are limited and vary through the year. In the summer period, it is open only on certain mornings and afternoons, and outside it, access may be restricted, so check the current schedule or contact the tourist office before you plan the visit. If it is closed, the exterior and the terrace can still be enjoyed, with the views over the Rhône and the hills on the opposite bank, where the ruins of the castle of Crussol stand on a ridge. A few small restaurants nearby offer a place to eat after the visit.

The cathedral quarter, with its quiet lanes, is a calm contrast to the busier parts of Valence. In the town centre, the Maison des Têtes, a Renaissance house covered in carved heads, the Champ de Mars park, with views of the river and the mountains, and the Place Gambetta are within reach, and the Parc de l'Île de Mars is by the river. The cathedral suits those interested in Romanesque architecture and in the history of the Rhône valley.