The hill that prays in Lyon, France

 It has been pouring rain, hailing here tonight in Lyon. It doesn't seem to want to stop.  Might have to head for the ark.

So I tell the history of things because it's interesting and I want to remember what I learned. 

So todays history lesson: Fourviere. It is a hill that overlooks the city. The Roman's established a city there in 43 B.C. There was a forum established. The Roman's lasted until the Middle Ages. The forum collapsed and the stone was used for other things. The hill lay dormant until the 16th century when there developed religious cults around St Thomas and then Mary in the area. 

A chapel was built in their honor  on the site of the old forum. There were plague epidemics in the 1600s. An annual pilgrimage was started up the hill to the chapel to ward off future epidemics.

In the 19th century a gold statue of Mary was commissioned and place on top of the chapel. A basilica was also built. The architecture is neo-Byzantine. People believed that Mary watched over the city and protected it. 

A pilgrimage continues every year on December 8 up the hill. People put a candle or lantern on their sill and walk up the hill with candles.

The basilica on the hill is seen as a symbol of Lyon. The Fourviere is known as "the hill that prays".

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September 24, 2022 at 07:07PM
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September 24, 2022 at 07:07PM