Construction on the cathedral began in 1175 and it was consecrated in 1275 by Pope Gregory X. It was completed in, well, never - it still remains unfinished today.

Lausanne was one of many medieval cities to institute a nightwatch to prevent the all-too-common threat of devastating fires. The cathedral nightwatch was the most important. Every night, the watchman walks up the 153 stairs to the top of the tower. Every hour on the hour from 10pm to 2am, he calls out to the four directions: "This is the nightwatch; the hour has struck".

View from the top of Lausanne Cathedral - Lausanne visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'View from the top of Lausanne Cathedral' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from Vaud.