The Cathedral of the Angels; Sichuanese romanization: ''Tʽien Shen Tʽang'', commonly referred to as Xichang Catholic Church ( zh, s=西昌天主堂, w=Hsi-chʻang Tʻien-chu-tʻang, p=Xīchāng Tiānzhǔtáng, links=no; Sichuanese romanization: ''Si Chʽang Tʽien Chu Tʽang''), also known as Yong'angong Church or Yong'an Catholic Church ( zh, t=永安公敎堂, w=Yung-an-kung Chiao Tʻang, p=Yǒng'āngōng Jiào Táng, links=no; Sichuanese romanization: ''Üin Ngan Kong Chiao Tʽang''; ) during the

Republican Era Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

. is the

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

cathedral of the Diocese of Ningyuan, situated on Sanya Street,

Xichang Xichang ( Northern Yi: /o̝˨˩dʐo̝˧/) is a city in and the seat of the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture in the south of Sichuan, China. History The Qiongdu were the local people at the time of contact with China. The county of Qiongdu is ...

(formerly known as Ningyuan), capital of Nosu-inhabited

Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture (Nuosu language, Northern Yi: /nɛ˨˩ʂa˧/) is an autonomous prefecture occupying much of the southern extremity of Sichuan province, People's Republic of China. Its seat is Xichang. Liangshan covers an area o ...

in southwestern

Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...

. It has been subjected to the control of the state-sanctioned Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association since 1957.

Description

Roman Catholicism was introduced into Ningyuan, land of the Nosu tribes, in the 18th century. The French missionary was put in charge of the evangelistic work in this region by

Paris Foreign Missions Society The Society of Foreign Missions of Paris (, , MEP) is a Catholic Missionary order, missionary organization. It is not a religious institute, but an organization of secular clergy, secular priests and Laity, lay persons dedicated to missionary wo ...

since 1903. Under Guébriant's supervision, construction of the Cathedral of the Angels started in 1908. The structure consisted of the cathedral, a bell tower, a courtyard and episcopal residence. It was not completed until 1912. The architectural form was inspired by

Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

, blended with conspicuous traditional style developed in Sichuan, as visible on the "flying cornices" on the top of the cathedral's façade, which are distinct from those found in other provinces of China. The bell tower was built on the east side of the cathedral with a cross on the top, which originally housed a bell cast in France. The bell tower was destroyed in 1968 during the sociopolitical purge movement of

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

Gallery

File:Cathedral of the Angels, Ningyuanfu.png, Detail of the cathedral circa 1920 File:Cathédrale des Anges de Ningyuen.jpg, The cathedral complex circa 1920 File:Evêché de Ningyuen.jpg, The episcopal residence in 1913

Notes

References

{{Christianity in Sichuan

Roman Catholic churches completed in 1912 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in China

Roman Catholic Diocese of Ningyuan Xichang

Description

Gallery

See also

Notes

References