The Basilica of Notre Dame de la Paix is the world’s largest church and the second-tallest Christian building after the Main Church of Ulm. Inspired by the Basilica of St. Peter in Vatican City, the church was constructed in 1983 in Yamoussoukro, the political capital of Côte d’Ivoire. The church’s layout covers an area of 30,000 square meters surrounded by 128 columns measuring 21 meters in height.
Having enough space to seat 7,000 people in the nave, The Basilica of Notre Dame de la Paix is the largest church in the world, surpassing the size of the Basilica of Saint Peters in the Vatican City.
The Lebanese architect Pierre Fakhoury designed the 158-meter-high dome slightly lower than St. Peter’s Basilica but placed a larger cross on top. Nevertheless, its dome is twice as large as the diameter of St. Peter’s, measuring 90 meters versus 41 meters. The overall structure was built with marble imported from Italy, and ornamented with elaborate stained glass from France.
