St. Dominic's Cathedral ( zh, s=福州圣多明我主教座堂), locally known as the Fanchuanpu Catholic Church (, ), is located by the Min River,

Fuzhou Fuzhou is the capital of Fujian, China. The city lies between the Min River (Fujian), Min River estuary to the south and the city of Ningde to the north. Together, Fuzhou and Ningde make up the Eastern Min, Mindong linguistic and cultural regi ...

Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. It is the seat of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Fuzhou and the Ecclesiastical Province of Fuzhou.

History

It was first established in the third year of Tongzhi in the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

(1864) by the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

Dominicans Dominicans () also known as Quisqueyans () are an ethnic group, ethno-nationality, national people, a people of shared ancestry and culture, who have ancestral roots in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican ethnic group was born out of a fusio ...

. In 1911, it was erected as the

cathedral church 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 ...

of the Archdiocese of Fuzhou. In the 21st year of the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

(1932) the old building was demolished and the present cathedral was begun in an area of 1371.4 square meters that can accommodate 3,000 people. It was known as "The Grandest Church in the South of

Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...

", and it is still the largest

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

church in

today. It was said that the sound of its bells ringing can be heard from more than ten

mile The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a imperial unit, British imperial unit and United States customary unit of length; both are based on the older English unit of Unit of length, le ...

s away. Before 1949, of the approximately 10,000 Catholics of

, approximately half belonged to the cathedral (5,153 people). During the

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 ...

, the church was attacked by the

Red Guards The Red Guards () were a mass, student-led, paramilitary social movement mobilized by Chairman Mao Zedong in 1966 until their abolition in 1968, during the first phase of the Cultural Revolution, which he had instituted.Teiwes According to a ...

in 1966, who then proceeded to removing the cross from the

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spire ...

atop the cathedral

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

. The cathedral was closed and used for other purposes. It was reopened in 1985. In 1994, the Cathedral of St. Dominic was the center of worship of about 16,000 Catholics and still serves as the place of worship for half of the Catholic population of Fuzhou.

The cathedral complex

Other than the cathedral itself, several other buildings form the cathedral complex: * The Cathedral

Rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...

* The Archdiocesan Center and Office * The Cathedral Garden, which contains a large standing

crucifix A crucifix (from the Latin meaning '(one) fixed to a cross') is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the (Latin for 'body'). The cru ...

; a shrine to the

Immaculate Heart of Mary The Immaculate Heart of Mary () is a Catholic devotion which refers to the view of the interior life of Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God the Father, her maternal love for ...

Our Lady of Fatima Our or OUR may refer to: * The possessive form of " we" Places * Our (river), in Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany * Our, Belgium, a village in Belgium * Our, Jura, a commune in France Other uses * Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR), a governm ...

; a shrine to St. Therese; a statue of

Sacred Heart of Jesus The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus () is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus Christ is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devotion to Christ is p ...

erected in the year 1990; a sculptural group featuring Christ as the

Good Shepherd The Good Shepherd (, ''poimḗn ho kalós'') is an image used in the pericope of , in which Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ is depicted as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep. Similar imagery is used in Psalm 23 and Ezeki ...

; stones engraved with biblical passages in Chinese; light-up religious texts; statues of

angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...

s and various

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

s, including Sts. Peter and

Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...

the Apostles, St. John Bosco, St. Michael the Archangel, etc. File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou Outdoor Crucifix.webp, The outdoor

, located behind the chancel File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou Shrine of the Immaculate Heart of Mary-Our Lady of Fatima.webp,

Shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

of the

File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou Shrine of St. Therese.webp,

of St. Therese File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou Rectory and Good Shephard Sculptural Group.webp, Side of the Cathedral

. The

Sculptural Group is in the foreground. File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou With the Cathedral Rectory and Statues of Sts. Peter and Paul the Apostles.webp, Statues of Sts. Peter and Paul the Apostles in front of the Cathedral

File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou Statue of St. John Bosco.webp, Statue of St. John Bosco with St. Dominic Savio

Architecture and interior

Architecture

The cathedral is built in the

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

style, however with Neoclassical,

Romanesque Revival 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 ...

, and Chinese touches, as respectively seen in the pillars of the nave, the rounded-arches found throughout the building, and many of the exterior

pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was main ...

s, which makes the cathedral unique within the realm of ecclesiastical construction. The cathedral follows a typical

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

floor plan with two rows of 11

Corinthian columns The Corinthian order (, ''Korinthiakós rythmós''; ) is the last developed and most ornate of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order, which was the earliest, ...

separating the

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 ...

from the two

aisle An aisle is a linear space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, in buildings such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parliaments, courtrooms, ...

s. The cathedral also features the

ribbed ''Ribbed'' is the third studio album by the American punk rock band NOFX, released in 1991 through Epitaph Records. It was their last album to feature Steve Kidwiler on guitar; he was replaced by El Hefe. ''Ribbed'' is also the last NOFX album ...

groin vault A groin vault or groined vault (also sometimes known as a double barrel vault or cross vault) is produced by the intersection at right angles of two barrel vaults. Honour, H. and J. Fleming, (2009) ''A World History of Art''. 7th edn. London: La ...

s—a common feature of the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

cathedrals of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. The vaults of St. Dominic's Cathedral are painted blue and dotted with stars. This is a common feature among cathedrals and churches built in the neo-Gothic style, such as the Sainte Chapelle in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, or the Notre Dame Basilica in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Altars

The cathedral contains five altars. The

high altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

of the cathedral is topped by a statue of

Our Lady of the Rosary Our Lady of the Rosary (), also known as Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, is a Titles of Mary, Marian title. The Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, formerly known as Feast of Our Lady of Victory and Feast of the Holy Rosary is celebrated on 7 October ...

, who revealed to St. Dominic the Catholic devotion of the

Rosary The Rosary (; , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), formally known as the Psalter of Jesus and Mary (Latin: Psalterium Jesu et Mariae), also known as the Dominican Rosary (as distinct from other forms of rosary such as the ...

. There are also four

side altar A side-altar or bye-altar is an altar that is subordinate to the central or high altar in a church. The term is generally applied to altars situated in bays of the nave, transepts, etc. Side-altars may be recessed in a side-chapel, or simply bu ...

s in four side chapels within the cathedral: the north-transept altar of St. Joseph; the south-transept altar of St. Therese; the altar at the chapel of the Sacred Heart at the rear of the north aisle, which was later rededicated to St. Vincent Ferrer; and the altar at the chapel of the

at the rear of the south aisle, which was later rededicated to

St. Francis Xavier Francis Xavier, SJ (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; ; ; ; ; ; 7 April 15063 December 1552), venerated as Saint Francis Xavier, was a Navarrese cleric and missionary. He co-founded the Society of Jesus and, as a representative o ...

in 2017, but eventually rededicated to St. Peter Sanz, a bishop of the Archdiocese of Fuzhou. The rededications of the two rear-end chapels to Sts. Vincent Ferrer and Peter Sanz is reminiscent of the cathedral's Dominican foundations and are possibly restorations of the original dedications of the altars from before the destructions brought by

. The

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

s of St. Joseph and St. Therese are placed in the central niche of their respective altars. File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Pre-2018-Renovation Nave.webp, Side of the nave before the addition of the new windows File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Pre-2018-Renovation Nave Window.webp, One of the old nave windows File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Nave.webp, Side of the nave after the new stained-glass windows have been installed File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou New Nave Stained-Glass Window Exterior View.webp, Exterior view of one of the new windows. This window shows the Apparition of

Blessed Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

to St. Bernadette Soubirous in

Lourdes Lourdes (, also , ; ) is a market town situated in the Pyrenees. It is part of the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region in southwestern France. Prior to the mid-19th century, the town was best known for its Château fort, a ...

. File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou Post-Renovation Interior.webp, The cathedral interior after the 2017 renovation File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou High Altar.webp, The high altar File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou St. Joseph's Chapel.webp, St. Joseph's Chapel File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou St. Therese's Chapel.jpg, Altar/Shrine inside St. Therese's Chapel File:St. Dominic's Cathedral Fuzhou View of the Choir Loft.webp, View of the choir loft

Renovations

To reverse the damages inflicted upon the cathedral during the

as well as the deteriorations throughout the years, the cathedral was heavily renovated and restored in 2017. The nave column capitals were gilded to highlight the details. The walls of the cathedral, now covered with

mold A mold () or mould () is one of the structures that certain fungus, fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of Spore#Fungi, spores containing Secondary metabolite#Fungal secondary metabolites, fungal ...

due to the damp climate of

South China South China ( zh, s=, p=Huá'nán, j=jyut6 naam4) is a geographical and cultural region that covers the southernmost part of China. Its precise meaning varies with context. A notable feature of South China in comparison to the rest of China is ...

, were cleaned and whitewashed. Leaded

stained-glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

windows featuring simple designs were specially commissioned and installed on the west-end of the cathedral as well as the three east windows featuring the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

and the Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church in the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

. In addition, a new

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

and Versus Populum Altar, Ambo,

baptismal font A baptismal font is an Church architecture, ecclesiastical architectural element, which serves as a receptacle for baptismal water used for baptism, as a part of Christian initiation for both rites of Infant baptism, infant and Believer's bapti ...

Altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

of St. Joseph, and Altar of St. Therese, as well as new matching

altar rail The altar rail (also known as a communion rail or chancel rail) is a low barrier, sometimes ornate and usually made of stone, wood or metal in some combination, delimiting the chancel or the sanctuary and altar in a church, from the nave and ot ...

s were commissioned and was installed at the cathedral. Other changes included the addition of new angel holy water basins and the removal of the

curtain A curtain is a piece of cloth or other material intended to block or obscure light, air drafts, or (in the case of a shower curtain) water. Curtains are often hung on the inside of a building's windows to block the passage of light. For instan ...

s and the curtain rods of the nave windows. 010621200095wycfh153B W 640 10000

The more complicated leaded painted stained-glass windows featuring biblical scenes and

Marian Apparitions A Marian apparition is a reported supernatural appearance of Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary, the mother of Jesus. While sometimes described as a type of vision, apparitions are generally regarded as external manifestations, whereas visions are mor ...

and other Catholic iconographies were later installed in the cathedral

2008 cathedral rectory structural relocation

The church was listed among the major cultural relics of

Fujian Province Fujian is a province in southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefecture city by population is Qua ...

in 1996. Owing to Fuzhou's urban development of the South Riverside Avenue in 2008, which was projected to go through where the cathedral

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...

was standing, the cathedral rectory was structurally relocated. The cathedral rectory structural relocation was conducted by the Academy of Building Research in order to make some modifications without altering its beauty and original conception. The cathedral rectory was moved 80 meters from its original location and rotated 90 degrees to make way for the street construction.

References

{{coord, 26, 03, 04, N, 119, 19, 12, E, region:CN_type:city_source:kolossus-plwiki, display=title Churches in Fuzhou Churches in Fujian Roman Catholic cathedrals in China Tourist attractions in Fujian Tourist attractions in Fuzhou Cathedral architecture Catholicism in China Catholicism in Asia Dominican churches Gothic Revival church buildings in China