The Basel Minster is a church (originally a Cathedral) located in Basel, built between A.D. 1019 and 1500.
(The Southern Tower (left is named the Martinsturm and the Northern tower is named the Georgsturm after Saints George and Martin, saints of knights)
The original structure was originally started in A.D. 1019 by Bishop Adalberto II (the city of Basel had served as the seat of a bishop since the relocation of the seat from Augusta Raurica in the mid 4th Century A.D.). The initial layout was completed in A.D. 1225.
The structure was damaged by an earthquake in A.D. 1356 but was rebuilt by 1363. In A.D. 1421, additional towers were added. The last major addition, a tower in the Southern quarter, was added in A.D. 1500 and marks the end of the construction (a mere 481 years).
After the Reformation, the cathedral became a Protestant church. Many of the artwork and interior decorations were destroyed by iconoclasts in A.D. 1528 and 1529.
