The history of the cathedral of Pécs goes back to the period of the Roman empire. The base walls of the undercroft were built at the end of the 4th century and they were extended to the western direction in the 8th-9th centuries. The original church became an undercroft in the period of King St. Stephen, as a sanctuary was built above it. The two western towers probably date back to this period, too. In the Middle ages the church was extended with two more towers. The chapels were built in the Gothic period.
The exterior of the church was formed according to the plans by Mihály Pollack at the beginning of the 19th century, and by Friedrich von Schmidt at the end of the 19th century. The interior frescoes were painted by Bertalan Székely and Károly Lotz. Its organ is the 100th Angster organ.
In 1993 the cathedral was elevated to the rank of basilica minor by the Pope.