Alessandria Cathedral ( it, Duomo d'Alessandria, Cattedrale dei Santi Pietro e Marco) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in

Alessandria Alessandria (; pms, Lissandria ) is a city and ''comune'' in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. The city is sited on the alluvial plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, about east of Turin. Alessandria ...

, Piedmont, Italy, dedicated to

Saints Peter In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

and Mark. It is the seat of the

Bishop of Alessandria The Diocese of Alessandria ( la, Dioecesis Alexandrina Statiellorum) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Piedmont, northern Italy. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Vercelli.Pope Alexander III Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland ( it, Rolando), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181. A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a con ...

, and a cathedral dedicated to Saint Peter was built as the bishop's seat at that time. It was too small however, so was demolished and rebuilt between 1288 and 1297. This cathedral was demolished for military tactical reasons on the order of

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

in 1803. The dispossessed bishop and chapter received the permission of the French general of the occupying troops to elevate the church of St Mark to the status of cathedral. This church had been built in the 13th century for the use of the Dominicans. The French troops had commandeered it in 1797 for quarters. The church had however to be rebuilt: this took place from 1807 to 1810, and the new Neo-classical cathedral, named after both Saint Peter and Saint Mark, opened in December 1810. A major restoration was carried out from 1875 to 1879, and the cathedral was actually consecrated only in 1879, at the end of these further works. The interior was badly damaged by fire in 1925, and was extensively refurbished between 1925 and 1929.

References

External links

Diocese of Alessandria: cathedral description

Municipal webpage of the commune of Alessandria

Description of the cathedral organ
{{coord, 44.9121, 8.6184, type:landmark_region:IT, display=title Roman Catholic cathedrals in Italy Cathedrals in Piedmont Churches in the province of Alessandria Roman Catholic churches completed in 1810 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Buildings and structures in Alessandria