The Basilica of Saint Nicholas () is a

minor basilica Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...

in the town of

Saint-Nicolas-de-Port Saint-Nicolas-de-Port () is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle ''département'' in north-eastern France. The town's basilica, '' Saint Nicolas'', is a pilgrimage site, supposedly holding relics of Saint Nicholas brought from Italy. It is one o ...

Grand Est Grand Est (; ) is an Regions of France, administrative region in northeastern France. It superseded three former administrative regions, Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine, on 1 January 2016 under the provisional name of Alsace-Champagne-A ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It is a pilgrimage site, supposedly holding

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Patara (Lycia), Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya ...

brought from Italy.

Background

Nicolas became the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

of the

Duchy of Lorraine The Duchy of Lorraine was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire which existed from the 10th century until 1766 when it was annexed by the kingdom of France. It gave its name to the larger present-day region of Lorraine in northeastern France ...

. The current basilica was built in the 15th and 16th centuries and has fine

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

painted glass windows by Nicolas Droguet of Lyon, Valentin Bousch of Strasbourg,

Hans von Kulmbach Hans Suess, known as Hans von Kulmbach (1480 in Kulmbach, Franconia – prior to 3 December 1522 in Nuremberg), was a German artist active in Poland.John Denison Champlin, Charles CallahanCyclopedia of Painters and PaintingsNew York, Publisher: ...

and Veit Hirsvogel from Nuremberg,

Georges Millereau Georges may refer to: Places *Georges River, New South Wales, Australia * Georges Quay (Dublin) *Georges Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania Other uses * Georges (name) * ''Georges'' (novel), a novel by Alexandre Dumas * "Georges" (song), a 19 ...

and other unknown artists, as well as 19th century replacements for lost glass works.. Note images 31-33 o
the gallery
zoom on the text. It has been a French

Monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

since 1840, Eglise and a minor basilica since 1950.

References

Basilica churches in France Minor basilicas Churches in Meurthe-et-Moselle Gothic architecture in France Monuments historiques of Meurthe-et-Moselle Saint Nicholas {{France-RC-church-stub