The Cathédrale du Sacré-Cœur is the largest and oldest church in Lomé, a heavy neo-Gothic brick building completed in 1902 by the Steyl Society of the Divine Word during the German colonial period. With its red brick facade and twin square towers it looks distinctly like a transplanted Rhineland parish church, and it has been an unmissable landmark of the city centre for more than a century.
Inside the cathedral is plain and high-ceilinged, with simple stained glass and a long nave that is comfortably cool even in the middle of the day. Mass on Sunday morning is a major social event for Lomé's substantial Catholic community — the singing is excellent and the dress is at its best. The cathedral is also the seat of the Archdiocese of Lomé and a starting point for several of the city's larger processions, including the Feast of Christ the King in November.