The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption (), often called Port-au-Prince Cathedral (), was a

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( ; ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Haiti, most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 1,200,000 in 2022 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The me ...

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

. Built between 1884 and 1914, it was dedicated on , and became the cathedral church of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Port-au-Prince 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 Roman civilization * Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter ...

. The cathedral was destroyed in the devastating

2010 Haiti earthquake The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic Moment magnitude scale, magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake that struck Haiti at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The epicenter was near the town of Léogâne, Ouest (departm ...

. Before its destruction, the

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, usually dome-like structure on top of a building often crowning a larger roof or dome. Cupolas often serve as a roof lantern to admit light and air or as a lookout. The word derives, via Ital ...

of the north tower of the cathedral served as the front

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

of a pair, guiding mariners into Port-au-Prince harbor.

Destruction

The roof and the towers flanking the main entrance collapsed in the 2010 earthquake, although the lower parts of the walls remain standing. The earthquake also destroyed the

nunciature An apostolic nunciature is a top-level diplomatic mission of the Holy See that is equivalent to an embassy. However, it neither issues visas nor has consulates. The head of the apostolic nunciature is called a ''nuncio'', an ecclesiastical dip ...

and the archdiocesan offices, killing Archbishop

Joseph Serge Miot Joseph Serge Miot (23 November 1946 – 12 January 2010) was a Haitian Catholic prelate who served as the ninth Archbishop of Port-au-Prince from 2008 until his death in the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Biography Miot was born in Jérémie, G ...

instantly and

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop or archbishop of a diocese or an archdiocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vica ...

Charles Benoit later. File:Aerial view of Haitian National Cathedral from Global Hawk 2010-01-14.jpg, Remnants of the cathedral after its collapse. The aerial photo was taken 2 days after the earthquake of Tuesday, 12 January 2010 File:Notre Dame Catholic Cathedral Port-au-Prince (8070543162).jpg, Remnants of the cathedral after its collapse File:Rubbles of the cathedral after the earthquake that hit the Capital Port au Prince just before 5 pm on 12 January 2010.jpg, Interior of the cathedral after its collapse

Reconstruction

In March 2012, the Archdiocese of Port-au-Prince, in collaboration with ''Faith & Form'' magazine and the Institute for the Safeguarding of National Heritage (ISPAN), a Haitian-government institution, launched an international design competition inviting the architects from all over the world to submit ideas that would inform the reconstruction of the cathedral. Puerto Rican architect

Segundo Cardona Segundo Cardona Colom FAIA (born 1950) is a Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican architect and developer. His work has been recognized by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), by the ''Colegio de Arquitectos y Arquitectos Paisajistas de Puerto Rico'' ...

, FAIA from SCF Architects won the competition. He proposed to integrate and frame the facade of the old building, which survived the earthquake, with two new concrete towers, while the old

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-type ...

, whose pillars also partially survived, will be transformed into a covered courtyard. The religious ceremonies will take place at the level of the current transept under a vast room surmounted by a dome, underneath which will be the altar. The new design allows for a capacity of 1,200 faithful (capacity which can be raised to 600 additional persons thanks to the use of the covered yard). The interior of the new cathedral will be marked by the creative and abundant use of natural light, as the supply of electricity in Port-au-Prince is intermittent and expensive. "The winning design — sa modern interpretation of the traditional architecture of a cathedral .. Cardona’s other significant works include the Coliseum of San Juan and the Puerto Rico Pavilion built for the 1992 World Expo in

Seville, Spain Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Seville ...

." Despite millions being allocated for reconstruction efforts, the cathedral remains in ruins as of 2021. The congregation currently meets out of a smaller, transitional cathedral in the back of the current ruins, which was consecrated in 2014.

References

External links

*
The Construction and the Deterioration of a National Treasure: Port-au-Prince CathedralImage of the destroyed cathedral
{{2010 Haiti earthquake 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Haiti Buildings and structures in Port-au-Prince Roman Catholic cathedrals in Haiti 2010 disestablishments in Haiti Destroyed churches Roman Catholic churches completed in 1914 Buildings and structures demolished in 2010 1914 establishments in Haiti

Destruction

Reconstruction

See also

References

External links