Cathedral of St. Ursus

cathedral, Solothurn, Switzerland

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 13, 2026

Quick Summary

The Cathedral of St. Ursus is located in Solothurn, Switzerland, and has served as the cathedral church for the bishop of Basel since 1828. The current structure was built between 1762 and 1773, on the site of an earlier church founded in the 8th century in honor of St. Ursus. St. Ursula is a legendary virgin martyr and patron saint of Cologne, known for leading 11,000 virgins. The town of Solothurn itself has a long history, originating as a Celtic and Roman stronghold and growing around the site of the original church dedicated to St. Ursus.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

4 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Solothurn
Dominating the town is the Cathedral of St. Ursus (1762–73, on an earlier foundation), which since 1828 has been the cathedral church of the bishop of Basel. Other notable buildings are the Jesuit church (1680–88), the Clock Tower, or Zeitglockenturm (1250), the 15th-century town hall, and the Zeughaus, or Arsenal…
Read More
Dominating the town is the Cathedral of St. Ursus (1762–73, on an earlier foundation), which since 1828 has been the cathedral church of the bishop of Basel. Other notable buildings are the Jesuit church (1680–88), the Clock Tower, or Zeitglockenturm (1250), the 15th-century town hall, and the Zeughaus, or Arsenal…
Read More