The Franciscan order settled at the gates of the city of Basel in 1231, just five years after the death of Saint Francis. In 1250, Bishop Berthold II of Pfirt gave them the land currently located between Barfüsserplatz (Discalced Franciscans Square) and Steinenberg, to which they immediately began construction of the convent. The inauguration of the first church was in 1256. Smaller in size than the building that succeeded it, but already at the time, it had a long monastic choir and a pulpit with four altars. This first church was, a few decades later, completely demolished, making way for the new building. In its place, the buildings that make up the convent were built, grouped around a large cloister. The main parts of the church were built at the beginning of the 14th century, that is, before the earthquake of 1356. It is an admirable church, not so much because of its rich ornamentation, but because of its harmonious proportions and its intense luminosity.With its approximately 80 meters in length, the church of the Barefoot Franciscans is almost 20 meters taller than the Cathedral of Basel and, of all the churches on the Rhine, it has the highest choir.