On 16 September 1844, the project was awarded to a young architect from Ghent, Louis van Overstraeten, based on his designs in a competition begun in 1843. Van Overstraeten died from cholera in 1849 and was succeeded by Louis Hansotte. In 1853 the unfinished church was consecrated. Fund raising and building continued into 1880. The final cost is estimated as 2,547,888 Francs. Giacomo Puccini's funeral was held in the church in 1924.