Russian Orthodox Cathedral, Nice 4.13

The St Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral, Nice is an Eastern Orthodox cathedral located in the French city of Nice. It is recognized as a national monument of France, and it currently belongs to the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate. It is the largest Eastern Orthodox cathedral in Western Europe.The cathedral was opened in 1912, thanks to the generosity of Russia's Tsar Nicholas II. From 1931 until 15 December 2011, the parish that occupied the cathedral was part of the Paris-based Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe under the jurisdiction of the Church of Constantinople. After 2011, following a court ruling, the cathedral was transferred to the property of the Russian state, and the congregation came under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church.HistoryBeginning in the mid-19th century, Russian nobility visited Nice and the French Riviera, following the fashion established decades earlier by the English upper class and nobility. In 1864, immediately after the railway reached Nice, Tsar Alexander II visited by train and was attracted by the pleasant climate. Thus began an association between Russians and the French Riviera that continues to this day.