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The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière crowns the Fourvière hill, dominating Lyon's skyline with its four octagonal towers and gilded statue of the Virgin Mary. Built between 1872 and 1884, this ornate basilica blends Byzantine, Romanesque, and Gothic elements into one of France's most striking churches.
Construction was funded entirely by private donations from the people of Lyon as a vow of gratitude to the Virgin Mary for protecting the city during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. Architect Pierre Bossan designed it to be deliberately visible from every point in the city as an assertion of Catholic faith.