The best family-friendly hikes and walks around Le Mans

Big thick walls

Very nice place, inside and outside worth seeing

The church is one of the few buildings built in the tradition of Bourges Cathedral

The cultural monument was classified as a monument historique in 1862.

With the patronage of Saint Julian

Roman Catholic bishopric in Le Mans

The Saint-Julien du Mans Cathedral is a sacred building

A true work of art in the heart of the city of Le Mans, Saint-Julien Cathedral is a monument built in several stages spanning between the 11th and 15th centuries. In fact, the diversity of styles of this incredible building makes it a unique testimony to the evolution of religious art in the Middle Ages. Inside, precious old paintings rub shoulders with superb sculptures at the height of funerary art. On the vault of Le Mans Cathedral, no less than 47 musical angels from the 14th century welcome visitors, making this monument a place of reference for specialists in medieval instrumental making. Their remarkably preserved bright colors and their 24 different instruments bring joy and sweetness to any curious person who passes through the doors of the religious building. The presumed author of these incredible paintings, John of Bruges, is the same artist who created the cartoons for the Apocalypse tapestry visible in Angers. Also known as the painter of the princes of Valois, it was in Le Mans that he produced his most impressive work with the spectacular decoration of this vault. Le Mans Cathedral is also home to very beautiful tombs, starting with that of Guillaume du Bellay, the execution of which is attributed to Pierre Bontemps, an artist made famous for his collaboration in the erection of the tomb of François I. It is also in these places, during the funeral of Guillaume du Bellay, that the founders of La Pléiade met for the first time: Jacques Peltier du Mans, Pierre de Ronsard and Joachim du Bellay. The art of sculpture is also brought to the top in the Cathedral through elegant terracotta creations from the 17th century that we owe to Gervais Delabarre and Charles Hoyau. All of these works are dominated by an organ of great beauty signed by the famous architect Simon Hayneufvre. Dating from 1519, it presents one of the most beautiful French Renaissance buffets. Finally, precious tapestries presenting the lives of Saints Gervais and Protais as well as that of Saint-Julien, complete this collection. To top it off, Le Mans Cathedral offers an exceptional panorama of glass production from the 11th century to the present day. Among all the stained glass windows, we find a real treasure: The Ascension, created at the end of the 11th or the very beginning of the 12th century, is the oldest stained glass window preserved in a religious building. A witness to history and architecture, Saint-Julien Cathedral is therefore a unique place, characterized by a sublime combination of Romanesque and Gothic styles. Made up of thirteen chapels and a choir whose vault height reaches 34 meters, it is distinguished by the numerous pictorial and artistic works that it houses as well as by its stained glass windows, each more spectacular than the last.