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Origin and history

The Cathedral of Notre-Dame-de-la-Sède de Tarbes, dedicated to Mary as "the throne of wisdom" (Sedes Sapientia), has its origin in a 12th century church, of which two apses of the choir remain. His name comes from the Latin sede (throne), symbolizing the Virgin carrying the Child Jesus. The building, from plan to Latin cross, was enlarged in the 14th century by a Gothic nave, then modified until the 18th century with the addition of a narthex and a classical facade.

Ranked a historic monument in 1906, the cathedral combines Romanesque styles (abside and apsidioles vaulted in cul-de-four) and Gothic (nef with warheads, 13th–XIVth octagonal tower). Its interior houses a Marian chapel, a 17th century golden altarpiece, and a classified organ (buffet and instrumental part protected in 1974 and 1979). The vaults, painted in the 19th to 20th centuries, cover a transept with vaulted arms in a broken cradle.

The cathedral's history is marked by successive extensions: northern chapels (15th century), two-vessel capitular hall, and sacristy sheltering the treasure. The west facade, in Mugron sandstone, dates back to the 18th century, when the bishop of Cambout rearranged the interior (master altar, pulpit, panelling). The Wars of Religion (XVIe) left traces with the fortification of the apses, while restorations (XIXe–XXe) aimed at regaining its medieval appearance, as the war of defensive elevations in 1892.

Among the personalities related to the place, Saint Vincent de Paul was ordained a subdeacon (1598), and Bishop Pierre-Marie Théas, a resistant bishop during the Second World War, was buried there. The organ, restored between 1990 and 1993, regains its composition from the 17th to 18th centuries. The cathedral, always active, celebrates every 20 November the anniversary of its dedication, perpetuating a tradition of "immemorial time".

The stained glass windows of the abside (1861) and the painted decorations of the cross of the transept (1843) or vaults ( 1930s) bear witness to late artistic campaigns. The southern cloister, demolished in 1803, left room for a Saint-Louis chapel (1815), which was destroyed in 1959. The excavations then revealed remains of the north-east pillar of the partially restored cloister.

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