Religious Sights in Nice — 11 of Our Favourites

In 1060 the relics of Sainte Reparate, a young woman martyrised in Palestine in the 3rd century, arrived in Nice. A chapel dedicated to her was built in 1075 near the town's castle, but it did not receive the title of cathedral until 1590.

The new, larger building was built by Jean-André Guibert on the order of Bishop Didier Palletis and modelled on the church of Santa Susanna in Rome. It was consecrated in 1699, although the current facade was not built until 1830.

Inside there are ten Baroque chapels with ornate altarpieces which, until the 17th century, were connected to different guilds which had the responsibility of maintaining them. The high altar contains the relics of Saint Reparata and is surmounted by a painting of the martyr saint.

It was originally created as the chapel of the Jesuit college in Nice. It has been attributed to the architect Jean-André Guiberto because of its similarities with the Sainte Reparate cathedral of Nice.

After the elimination of the Jesuit order, the community was expelled in 1773, when the college and church became part if the royal schools. In 1801, it became a parish church. The façade was built in 1825 by Aycart.

The first Russian chapel in Nice was built in 1859, when the Russian community was already important in the city, but it quickly became too small. Construction work for a new, larger cathedral started in 1903 at Bermond Park. This was the place where the son of tzar Alexander II died due to a sudden meningitis when he was staying at Villa Bermond. The tzar had bought the park and built a chapel in honour of his son here.

The construction of the cathedral was planned near this funerary chapel, and it was designed by Preobajenski, an architecture professor at the Academy of Saint Petersburg. It was finally opened in 1912.

It has been declared a national monument of France and has a highly decorated interior with murals, icons and carved woodwork. It has recently undergone extensive renovation works.

There was a priory on the site in the 13th century, while the 14th-century church was rebuilt in the 18th century.

Look out for the wooden statue of San Rocco, patron saint of dog trainers. Its organ, dating from the end of the 18th century, is one of the oldest working organs in the region.

The first stone was set in 1914, when the foundations and the crypt were built by architect Castel, but his death and the start of the First World War meant that worked stopped then. In 1926 construction began again, this time under the guidance of the Parisian architect Jacques Droz, finishing in 1933.

The futuristic style of the church was typical of the time. The impressive domes create a large interior space. The church's 65 metre steeple is, by contrast, finished with sharp rectangular lines. Often nicknamed 'the meringue' because of its white colour, this church is disliked by many, but it's certainly a very original building.

Inside, there are frescoes by Eugène Klementieff inspired by cubism, orthodox icons and the style of the Italian Quattrocento.

The building which stands today is from the 17th century, rebuilt in 1677 to make it larger. In 1793 it was closed and turned into a salt storehouse, reopened in 1806 as a church.

It has a grand interior, quite a surprise when you compare it with the rather dull exterior, reconstructed in 1836 and never finished. The chapel dedicated to Saint Rita has frescoes depicting the life of the saint, and is the centre of the celebrations in her honour on May 22nd, when roses are blessed to aid in the recovery of the sick.

The church was built between 1747 and 1770 on the site of former salt storehouses. Vittone used a style typical of Baroque Piamonte churches which had to adapt to a narrow space.

It has a layered structure of domes and its interior is filled with exceptional murals and frescoes, some by Bistolfi. The two 15th-century altarpieces by Miralhet and Bréa stand grandly in the centre.

Created in 1783 because of a new law prohibiting burials inside churches, this cemetery occupies the place of Nice's old citadel. The oldest tombs, from the 19th century, feature a neo-classical style imitating Roman sarcophagi, while there are also neo-Gothic chapels.

A Jewish cemetery was built near the Christian cemetery, replacing the one used since the Middle Ages in central Nice. There is also an area for non-Catholics, created in 1845. After the great fire of the Opera in 1881, where 200 people died, a pyramidal monument was erected in the cemetery.

One of the most beautiful cemeteries in France, it is a great place to wander around, enjoying the views and visiting the tombs of famous characters buried here, or just looking at some of the best funerary monuments in Europe.

It is one of the oldest churches in Nice, and the current building replaces an older Gothic church which was rebuilt in 1636, with works stretching all the way to the 18th century. The facade was changed in the 19th century.

Documents show that Martin Luther officiated mass in this church in 1510, and Giuseppe Garibaldi was baptised here in 1807.

Probably dating back from the 16th century, the chapel was used by 20th-century fishermen as a place to store their material and to solve their differences. The chapel is obvious for its pink, yellow and white façade.

Inside, it houses some wonderful frescoes of Saint Peter, painted by Jean Cocteau in 1957. It was his first painted chapel and it depicts five main images, two scenes of Mediterranean life and three dedicated to the life of Saint Peter.

Originally founded in the 11th century by Benedictine monks, it was later turned into a Franciscan convent. The monastery is still home to Franciscan monks and is the location of a museum containing artwork, 17th century frescoes and documents, as well as a replica monk's cell.

The church houses three important paintings by the Bréa brothers, while the lovely gardens are home to a cemetery where Matisse and Dufy are buried.