Sospel Cathedral

Saint-Michel is a Roman Catholic parish church in the small mountain town of Sospel in the French Alpes-Maritimes, with its current fabric mostly dating to the 17th century. Between 1378 and 1411, during the Avignon Papacy, it briefly served as an episcopal seat and therefore as a cathedral, which is why it carries the unusual title of co-cathedral. The 1641 baroque facade overlays a medieval core; inside hangs a remarkable Nice School altarpiece, the Vierge de la Pousolle, one of the few surviving 15th-century panels from the region. The church has been listed as a Monument historique since 1951. Visitors who climb the steep alley up from the medieval bridge over the Roya enter a cool, high nave with gilt stucco and can, in good light, study the original panel directly in the apse.