Cahors Cathedral (

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

: ''Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Cahors'') 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 * Chri ...

located in the town of

Cahors Cahors (; oc, Caors ) is a commune in the western part of Southern France. It is the smallest prefecture among the 13 departments that constitute the Occitanie Region. The main city of the Lot department and the historical center of the Que ...

, Occitanie,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. A

national monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spe ...

, it is an example of the transition between the late Romanesque and

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

architectural traditions.

Overview

The church was built by bishop Gerard de CardaillacHugo fortified the rock of

Cardaillac Cardaillac (; oc, Cardalhac) is a commune in the Lot department in south-western France. It is located northwest of Figeac. The village is located on the edge of the Limargue—a rich agricultural region—and Ségala, a poor rye-and ...

Quercy Quercy (; oc, Carcin , locally ) is a former province of France located in the country's southwest, bounded on the north by Limousin, on the west by Périgord and Agenais, on the south by Gascony and Languedoc, and on the east by Rouergue and ...

( département of the Lot) in the mid-eleventh century, and the family remained prominent in the

Hundred Years War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagene ...

; the Cardaillac produced two bishops of

Montauban Montauban (, ; oc, Montalban ) is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department, region of Occitania, Southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, ...

, Guillaume de Cardaillac (1317–1355) and Bertrand de Cardaillac (1359–1361). in the 11th century, over a church erected in the 7th century by St. Didier of Cahors. It was consecrated by

Pope Calixtus II Pope Callixtus II or Callistus II ( – 13 December 1124), born Guy of Burgundy, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1 February 1119 to his death in 1124. His pontificate was shaped by the Investiture Controversy, ...

on September 10, 1119, and completed around 1135. The church, located in the city's centre, has the sturdy appearance of a fortified edifice: at the time, the local bishops were in fact also powerful feudal lords in their role as counts and barons of Cahors. The façade was renovated in 1316–1324 by Guillaume de Labroue, cousin of

Pope John XXII Pope John XXII ( la, Ioannes PP. XXII; 1244 – 4 December 1334), born Jacques Duèze (or d'Euse), was head of the Catholic Church from 7 August 1316 to his death in December 1334. He was the second and longest-reigning Avignon Pope, elected b ...

, confirms this impression: it resembles a heavy castle wall, consisting in a porch surmounted by a bell tower enclosed between two towers. The six windows, as well as those on the porch sides, are rather narrow; the only elements characterizing it as a church are the magnificent portal with triple splays, surmounted by a gallery of small arches, and the large

rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window' ...

. On the northern side is a secondary façade in Romanesque style, also fortified.

Nave

The well-illuminated

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-typ ...

is 44 x 20 m wide. The two massive, 32 m-high, domes in Byzantines style, resting on

pendentives In architecture, a pendentive is a constructional device permitting the placing of a circular dome over a square room or of an elliptical dome over a rectangular room. The pendentives, which are triangular segments of a sphere, taper to point ...

, are supported by six huge pilasters. Unusually, there is no

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building with ...

. One of the domes is decorated with 14th-century frescoes, depicting the stoning of St. Stephen as well as eight prophets, each riding an animal, in the fashion of Greek or Hindu deities. The walls have numerous other medieval paintings.

Apse

In Gothic style on a Romanesque base (to which belong the columns with decorated capitals), the apse has three chapels with sculptures. The complex forms a pleasant contrast between the white apse and the colorful stained glass and the paintings of the choir. There are several tombs, such as that of Alain de Solminihac, and the precious relic of the Holy Cap, which supposedly was worn by Christ and which was brought to France by bishop Gerard de Cardillac after his trip to the Holy Land in 1113.

Cloister

A door on the right of the choir gives access to the

Flamboyant Gothic Flamboyant (from ) is a form of late Gothic architecture that developed in Europe in the Late Middle Ages and Renaissance, from around 1375 to the mid-16th century. It is characterized by double curves forming flame-like shapes in the bar-tr ...

-style

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against ...

, built in 1504 by bishop Anthony of Luzech. It has scenes of everyday life and a Madonna. On the western side is the St. Gaubert Chapel, with the vault decorated with Italian Renaissance paintings and, on the walls, 15th-century frescoes representing the ''

Last Judgement The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

''. It is now home to a museum of Religious Art.

Gallery

File:Plan.cathedrale.Cahors.png, Plan of the cathedral File:Stained glass windows.JPG, Stained glass windows File:Saint Stephen Cathedral of Cahors 14.jpg, View File:Cahors cloitre.jpg, Cloister

Footnotes

External links

* {{Authority control Churches in Lot (department) Roman Catholic cathedrals in France Fortified church buildings in France 12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in France Buildings and structures completed in 1135 Monuments historiques of Lot (department) World Heritage Sites in France Romanesque architecture in France