Chaumont - Basilique Saint-Jean-Baptiste

Chaumont (pop. ~ 22.000) is located in the centre of Haute Marne.

Peasants and artisans settled around an early existing fortified motte and so started the development of Chaumont, owned since the 12th century by the Counts of Champagne.

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"Saint-Jean-Baptiste" was built at the beginning of the 13th century to meet the needs of a growing population. It was made a collegiate church in 1474 by Pope Sixtus IV and raised to "basilica minor" in 1948 by Pope Pius XII.

The double tower facade and the central nave date from the 13th century, while the lateral naves and the flamboyant side portal, seen here, were added to the structure within the 14th and 15th century.