The Cathedral of Saint Mary of Bayonne or the Cathedral of Our Lady of Bayonne ( French: ''Cathédrale Sainte-Marie de Bayonne'' or ''Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Bayonne'';

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

: ''Santa Maria katedrala'' or ''Andre Maria katedrala''), commonly known as Bayonne Cathedral, is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

in the town of Bayonne,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. It is the seat of the former

Bishops of Bayonne A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

, now the Bishops of Bayonne, Lescar, and Oloron. The

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

is in the Gothic architectural tradition. The site was previously occupied by a Romanesque cathedral that was destroyed by two fires in 1258 and 1310. Construction of the present cathedral began in the 13th century and was completed at the beginning of the 17th, except for the two spires which were not finished until the 19th century. The structure has been much restored and refurbished, notably by Émile Boeswildwald, architect to the French government in the 19th century, and a pupil of

Eugène Viollet-le-Duc Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (; 27 January 181417 September 1879) was a French architect and author who restored many prominent medieval landmarks in France, including those which had been damaged or abandoned during the French Revolution. H ...

. The cathedral contains the relics of Saint Leo of Bayonne, a 9th-century Bishop of Bayonne and evangelizer of the Basque Country. The cathedral stands on the Pilgrimage Way of Santiago de Compostela and, as part of the

Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France UNESCO designated the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France as a World Heritage Site in December 1998. The routes pass through the following regions of France: Aquitaine, Auvergne, Basse-Normandie, Bourgogne, Centre, Champagne-Ardenne, Ile-d ...

, has been added to the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

in 1998.

References

Bibliography

*Saint-Vanne, A. (1930). "La cathedrale de Bayonne"
''Bulletin trimestriel: Société des sciences, lettres, arts, et d'ėtudes regionales de Bayonne''
n.s. 5 (Bayonne 1930), pp. 10–51.

External links

Location of this buildingWebsite of the cloister
Roman Catholic cathedrals in France Churches in Pyrénées-Atlantiques World Heritage Sites in France Bayonne {{France-RC-cathedral-stub