The basilica, built between 1864 and 1868, was designed by Louis Lenormand and is the largest church in Nice,[2] but is not the cathedral of the city.

Its construction was motivated by a desire to add French architecture to the city following the acquisition of the County of Nice by France from the Kingdom of Sardinia; at the time Gothic buildings were considered to be characteristically French.

On 29 October 2020, three people were killed at the church in an act of Islamic terrorism.

[3] The suspect was identified as a 21 year old Tunisian illegal immigrant,[4][5] who had reportedly shouted "Allahu Akbar" while holding a Quran.

[6] This article about a church building or other Christian place of worship in France is a stub.