TravelswithCharie

  During its wars against Russia in the 1700s, the Swedish Parliament believed it necessary to build a fortress to reinforce its defenses and establish a naval base in Helsinki. Construction of the fortification started in 1748 on the Susiloudot Islands (now Soumenlinna) off Helsinki. They named the fortress, Sveaborg (Castle of the Swedes). Suomenlinna is a group of rocky islands connected by bridges. It has seen a succession of foreign occupation from the Swedes to the Russians before finally becoming a part of an independent Finland. Soumenlinna Church was built in 1854 as a Russian Orthodox garrison church. It was converted to the Evangelical Lutheran Church when Finland gained independence in 1917 and took ownership of Soumenlinna in 1918. The steeple is also a lighthouse for air and sea traffic. The Great Courtyard was designed by Augustin Ehrensvärd and it was the main square and administrative center of Soumenlinna since the 1760s. Ehrensvärd is laid to rest in the center of th

The austere brick exterior of the 13th century Sainte-Cécile Basilica Cathedral of Albi (or Albi Cathedral) reveals nothing about its opulent interior with its painted vaulted ceiling and columns, the Gothic lacy stonework in the Choir, the exquisite rood screen, and the 15th century mural of the Last Judgment under the monumental organ by Christophe Moucherel. The altar of the Church of the Canons within the Cathedral. The Choir of the Canons is hidden behind the rood screen which divides the Cathedral in two.  It is decorated with a host of angels, the twelve apostles, the Virgin Mary, St. John the Baptist and St. Paul. The statue of Sainte Cecile, the patron saint of the Cathedral, is at the center of the screen below the crucifix. The figures of the emperors Charlemagne and Constantine face one another above the north and south entrances to the Choir. The ambulatory around the Choir is decorated with carved figures from the Old Testament. Notice the painted columns.