Saint Pierre Cathedral

Listen for a moment. The noise of Geneva falls away up here. The streets of the Old Town climb toward this hill, and the cobbles turn uneven underfoot. Then the stone of the cathedral rises in front of you, grey and pale gold, cool to the touch even on a warm afternoon. Somewhere above, a bell may be counting the hour. You are standing on the highest point of the old city, and people have gathered on this ground for a very long time.

This is Saint Pierre Cathedral, named for Saint Peter. Before we step inside, look at the building as a whole. Something about it does not quite match. The front has tall classical columns and a triangular pediment, like a temple in ancient Rome. Behind them rise heavy medieval towers. Between those towers stands a slender green spire. Three different eras sit together here, one stacked against the other. Each one shows how Geneva has changed.

Start with the oldest story, which is underground. This hilltop was settled long before the cathedral existed. Archaeologists working beneath the floor found layers of earlier buildings. These include traces from the Roman period and the remains of early Christian churches from late antiquity. They also found the grave of a local Celtic chieftain from the time before the Romans. The excavated site lies below the cathedral, and you can visit it. Walking there, you move through many centuries of the same small piece of ground.

The cathedral above was begun in the twelfth century. Building went on for generations, which explains the mix of styles inside. The lower, rounder forms are Romanesque. That is the solid medieval style of thick walls and rounded arches. The taller, pointed arches above them are Gothic, the later style that reached toward the light. Masons came and went, fashions changed, and the church grew slowly. Look closely at the walls and you can see where one campaign of work ended and another began.

Now step through the doors. Most visitors feel the surprise right away. The interior is plain. There are no rows of painted saints, no gilded altars, almost no colour on the walls. The light falls on bare stone. This was not always so. In the Middle Ages, this church was filled with images, statues and decoration, like the great cathedrals of France and Italy. What you see now is the result of one of the biggest turning points in European history.

In 1535, Geneva adopted the Protestant Reformation. The city broke with the Catholic Church, and the cathedral changed with it. Statues and altars were removed. Painted walls were covered over. Worship moved away from images and toward the spoken word. Soon afterward, the French reformer John Calvin arrived in Geneva. For much of the rest of his life he preached here. His ideas about faith, discipline and government travelled from this city to Scotland, the Netherlands, and later to North America.

Look for a simple wooden chair near the front. It is known as Calvin's chair, and tradition holds that he used it. Think of the contrast with a bishop's throne in a Catholic cathedral, which would be carved and raised high. This seat is modest, almost severe. That modesty was the point. Here is a second detail many visitors miss. Turn your eyes upward to the tops of the columns in the nave. The carved capitals survived the Reformation, and they still show strange creatures, leaves and figures from the medieval world.

Off to one side you will find a very different space. This is the Chapel of the Maccabees, added in the early fifteenth century by a powerful cardinal who wanted a burial chapel. It is built in the late Gothic style, with delicate ribs across the vault. After the Reformation it was used for other purposes for a long time. In the nineteenth century it was restored with rich painted decoration in a revived Gothic style. Standing in it, you get a sense of the colour that once filled much of the church.

Here is a story worth carrying with you. One of the most important paintings of the fifteenth century was made for this cathedral. It is an altarpiece by the painter Konrad Witz. One panel shows Christ walking on water, but the water is Lake Geneva. You can see the real shoreline and the mountains behind it. It is often called one of the first realistic landscapes in European painting. The original is no longer here. It is kept in the city's Museum of Art and History.

Now come back outside, to that classical front. The columned portico was added in the eighteenth century, when the old medieval facade had become unstable. The builders chose the fashion of their own time. The design looks back to ancient Rome, and it is often compared to the Pantheon. Some people find the mix awkward. Others see it as honest. It shows that the people of Geneva did not try to fake the Middle Ages. They repaired their church in their own style.

The green spire between the towers is the newest major part. It was added in the late nineteenth century, made of metal rather than stone. Copper turns green as it weathers, and that is the colour you see against the sky. Inside the towers hang the cathedral's bells. The largest and oldest is called La Clémence. It was cast in the early fifteenth century, so its voice has rung over the city since before the Reformation began.

If you have the energy, climb the north tower. The staircase is narrow and winds tightly upward, and the steps are worn. At the top, the whole city opens below you. You can see the red and brown roofs of the Old Town, the long blue shape of the lake, and the tall white plume of the Jet d'Eau fountain. On a clear day the Alps line the horizon. From here you understand why this hill mattered to everyone who ever ruled Geneva.

Before you go, pause in the square outside. Just beside the cathedral stands a smaller church called the Auditoire, where Calvin taught and where refugees from England and Scotland once worshipped in their own languages. Close by is a museum devoted to the Reformation. Take a last look at the cathedral front. The Roman columns, the medieval stone, the green spire. Then follow the slope of the cobbles down toward the lake, and listen for the bells behind you.