The Graoully

In the 3rd century, a monstrous dragon with a ferocious appetite decimated the young people of Metz. Saint Clement saved the city from the monster and the snakes that lived with it in the old Roman amphitheatre, by drowning them in the Seille.

Saint Arnould

The ancestor of Charlemagne, Saint Arnould accepted the position of bishop after miraculously finding his ring, which had been thrown into the Moselle.

Pierre Perrat

The construction of a cathedral is such an extraordinary task that people sometimes see it as the Devil’s work. The architect Pierre Perrat is said to have sold his soul to the Devil in exchange for the successful completion of his masterpiece in Metz. His soul was saved: he remains in the cathedral for all eternity, and his epitaph can be seen there.

Mademoiselle de Turmel

The cathedral bell known as Mademoiselle de Turmel is the subject of a legend. One night, Anne Turmel waited for her fiancé in vain. In memory of the young man, who was killed by bandits, and to prevent attacks at night, a bell was cast to announce a curfew at ten o’clock at night. It is said that Mademoiselle de Turmel threw her engagement ring into the liquid bronze used to make the bell…

Saint Nicolas

Saint Nicholas, Patron Saint of the Lorrains, is particularly popular with children. He is said to have resuscitated three little children who were killed by a butcher and kept in a salting tub.
Many parades are organised in his honour throughout Lorraine in early December.

The Easter hare

On Easter day, children go looking for Easter eggs, hidden in the gardens by the hare. This imaginary hare, a symbol of life and resurrection in the first mornings of spring, is a tradition dating back to the 16th century.