St. Peter's Cathedral Basilica, is a church located at 196 Dufferin Avenue in
London, Ontario, Canada for the seat of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of London
The Diocese of London forms part of the Church of England's Province of Canterbury in England.
It lies directly north of the Thames. For centuries the diocese covered a vast tract and bordered the dioceses of Norwich and Lincoln to the north ...
.
History
The parish now known as St. Peter's was established 10 August 1834 and the first church was constructed of logs at the southwest corner of Dufferin Avenue and Richmond Street. Prior to this, a travelling priest visited the area to celebrate Mass for Catholic residents. The church was dedicated to St. Lawrence and could hold 180 people. It was destroyed along with much of the town in the London fire of 11 April 1845.
A larger frame church was built with donated materials and labour, but this church also burned in August 1850. This was replaced by a new St. Lawrence Church constructed of brick. The new church was located at the northeast corner of Dufferin and Richmond, just in front of the present structure. This land was granted by the
Crown to
Bishop Alexander Macdonell of the
Diocese of Kingston. The cornerstone for the new church was laid 29 June 1851, the
Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul
The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul or Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul is a liturgical feast in honor, of the martyrdom in Rome of the apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which is observed on 29 June. The celebration is of ancient Christi ...
.
The Diocese of London was created in 1856 and Bishop
Pierre-Adolphe Pinsoneault selected St. Lawrence as his
cathedral renaming the church ''St. Peter's''. In 1859, Bishop Pinsoneault moved the seat to
Windsor where it remained until 1868 when Bishop John Walsh, Pinsoneault's successor, moved it back to London.
Bishop Walsh felt that the diocese should have a cathedral that was a true monument to its people. He selected
Joseph Connolly as architect
and construction began in July 1880.
The structure was built in a 13th-century French
French Gothic Revival style between 1880 and 1885.
The cathedral was dedicated 28 June 1885. The first stained glass windows were added in 1889 but the interior decoration was not completed until 1926. The Casavant organ was also installed in that year.
In 1958, the twin towers of the facade, Lady Chapel, and sacristy were added, stained glass windows were installed in the narthex and additional interior painting and decoration completed. St. Peter's was raised to the status of a
minor basilica 13 December 1961 by
Pope John XXIII.
In 1968, the Cathedral Basilica's interior was renovated. The existing high altar and communion rails were removed, and a marble altar was installed.
The
cathedra
A ''cathedra'' is the raised throne of a bishop in the early Christian basilica. When used with this meaning, it may also be called the bishop's throne. With time, the related term ''cathedral'' became synonymous with the "seat", or principa ...
was moved to the behind the altar. This renovation doubled the size of the sanctuary.
The current bishop of the Diocese of London is the
Most Reverend Ronald Fabbro,
CSB.
See also
*
List of churches in the Roman Catholic Diocese of London, Ontario
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Peter's Cathedral, London, Ontario
Peter
Peter
Buildings and structures in London, Ontario
19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Canada