Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Notre-Dame-de-l'Immaculée-Conception Cathedral, also known as Notre-Dame-de-la-Platea, was the episcopal seat of Antibes from the fifth century until 1244, when it was transferred to Grasse. It is the largest church in the city and preserves traces of its paleo-Christian origin, including a double church dated the fifth century, discovered during excavations under the Holy Spirit Chapel. According to local tradition, it was built on the foundations of a Roman temple dedicated to Diane and Minerva.

The first certified bishop, Saint Armentaire (or Hermantaire), monk of the abbey of Lérins, was appointed by Pope Leo the Great and quoted at the council of Vaison in 442. He dedicated the first cathedral to the Virgin Mary, reworked until the Carolingian era. A Saracen incursion in 1124 did not damage the cathedral area, but affected the city. The facade, destroyed in 1746 during the Austrian Succession War, was restored by Louis XV with royal funds.

The outstanding architectural elements include the 18th-century doors carved by Joseph Dolle, representing Saint Roch and Saint Sebastian, protectors of Antibes. The interior houses a altarpiece of Louis Bréa (1515), a wooden Christ of 1447, and an organ of 1860. The cathedral, classified as a historical monument in 1945, also includes the Holy Spirit Chapel and the Grimaldi Tower, testimonies of its evolution throughout the centuries.

Major construction periods date back to the 12th and 17th centuries, with later modifications such as the 19th century façade. The building thus illustrates almost 15 centuries of religious and architectural history, mixing paleo-Christian, medieval and classical influences.

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