SAINTE-WAUDRU COLLEGIATE CHURCH

The Collégiale Sainte-Waudru is one of Wallonia's major heritage sites. Dedicated to Saint Waudru, patron saint of the city of Mons (canonized by the church in 1039), the massive silhouette of this Brabantine Gothic edifice dominates the surrounding area. Begun in 1450, construction of the Collégiale Sainte-Waudru lasted over two centuries (work stopped in 1691), without the church ever being completed! It has to be said that its impressive dimensions (115 m long, 32 m wide and 24.5 m high at the keystone) were perhaps too ambitious for the architects of the time.... As a result, the bell tower, which was to have reached a height of almost 200 m, ended up at the level of the nave roof! But this doesn't stop the building from impressing visitors with its overwhelming presence. The interior features works in alabaster by Jacques du Broeucq (1505-1584), considered the greatest Renaissance architect-sculptor north of the Loire. In the former chapter house, the Treasure is one of the finest collections of religious silverware in Wallonia, dating from the ^12th to the ^19th century. Ancient manuscripts, paintings, statues, objects worked with the "poinçon de Mons" and the exceptional Sainte-Waudru shrouds make these sacred places a must-see. The ^16th-century stained glass windows are among the best preserved and most complete in Belgium. They were financed by wealthy patrons, notably Emperor Maximilian ^I of the House of Habsburg.