Basilicas in Selected European Countries

I blogged about the following basilica on March 17, 2019.

•  Cathedral Basilica of St. Chad, Birmingham, England.

I blogged about the following basilica on April 10, 2021.

•  Cathedral Basilica of Christ the King, Reykjavik, Iceland.

 

Basilica of Our Lady of Meritxell, Meritxell, Canillo, Andorra

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Francis in 2014.

The Modern Basilica was built in the 1970s to replace a 16^th Century Romanesque church that was destroyed by fire in 1972.  The old church had a 12^th Century statue of Our Blessed Mother that was also destroyed in the fire.  The new church has a replica of the statue as well as seven wooden statues of martyrs, each representing a region of Andorra.

Pictures are from Flickr, a local source, and Wikipedia (last two).

Former Basilica of Corpus Christi, Manchester, Manchester, England

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius X in 1904—the first in England.

The Basilica was built between 1906 and 1907 by the Norbertine Order.  It was constructed with sandstone and bricks in an Italian Romanesque style.  Maintenance costs forced the Norbertines to close the church in 2007 and it is now used for secular purposes.

From Wikipedia.

Downside Abbey and Basilica of St. Gregory the Great, Stratton on the Fosse, Somerset, England

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1935.

Benedictine monks came to England from Flanders in 1795 and established a monastery in Downside in 1814.  Construction of the Gothic Revival abbey/basilica church was begun in 1873 and continues today.  The church was consecrated in 1935.  The future of the monastery is in doubt.  Due to lawsuits involving sexual abuse at Downside School, the monastery has had to sell some of its assets, including Renaissance-era paintings.  Also, the monastery only has 15 monks and is considering a move to a different monastery.

The first picture is from the Abbey website and the others are from Wikipedia.

National Shrine and Basilica of Our Lady of Walsingham, Little Walsingham, Norfolk, England

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Francis in 2015.

Walsingham became a major pilgrimage destination after an apparition of Our Lady in 1061.  The shrine was destroyed in 1538 during the reign of Henry VIII and the statue of Our Lady of Walsingham was burnt.  An Anglican shrine was built in Walsingham in 1931.  The Catholic Shrine and Basilica was once known as the Slipper Chapel.  It was built in 1340 as the last pilgrimage stop on the way to Walsingham.  The chapel fell into disuse after Henry VIII destroyed the church at Walsingham.  A wealthy convert to Catholicism bought the chapel and restored it in 1897.  Catholic pilgrims often walk barefoot from the Basilica to the original shrine—a distance of one mile.

 All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Patrick, Lough Derg, Pettigo, County Donegal, Ireland

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1931.

St. Patrick’s Purgatory has been a pilgrimage site since the 5^th Century due to the belief that St. Patrick, discouraged by people wanting proof of Christianity, was shown by Christ a cave that was the entrance to Purgatory.  Over the centuries, pilgrims came from all over Europe.  The site is on an island in a lake.  The current Romanesque Basilica was built between 1925 and 1930 using concrete and stone.  The Basilica has a copper clad dome and 169 windows.

The first picture is from a local source and the others are from Wikipedia.

Basilica Shrine of Our Lady of Knock, Queen of Ireland, Knock, County Mayo, Ireland

Declared a minor basilica by Pope John Paul II in 1979.

 The Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, St. John the Evangelist, as well as Jesus, the Lamb of God accompanied by angels, appeared to several people at the local church in 1879.  Since then, the site has become a major pilgrimage site, attracting Pope John Paul II, Pope Francis, and Mother Teresa of Calcutta.  Although the original parish church still stands, the Basilica was completed in 1976.  The modern concrete structure can hold 10,000 people.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

 

Basilica of St. Willibrord, Echternach, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1939.

St. Willibrord built the first church on this site in 698.  Pilgrims to his tomb resulted in the building of a larger church which was destroyed by fire in 1016.  The current Basilica was completed in 1031 using Romanesque and Gothic styles.  French revolutionaries severely damaged the church in the late 1700s and it was not restored until the 1860s.  The church was again severely damaged by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge in 1944.  It was restored in 1953.  St. Willibrord is buried in a white marble sarcophagus.  Stained glass windows depict the Seven Sorrows and Seven Joys of Mary.

 

Both pictures are from local sources.

Basilica and Co-Cathedral of San Marino, San Marino, San Marino

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1926.

The Basilica is the Co-Cathedral of the Diocese of San Marino-Montefeltro (Italy) and is dedicated to St. Marinus, the founder and patron of the Republic of San Marino. (San Marino has been an independent republic within Italy since 301.  It has a population of about 35,000.)  A church was built on this location in the 4^th Century and the present Neo-Classical Basilica was built in between 1826 and 1838.  St. Marinus is buried in the Basilica.

Pictures are from Dreamstime and Wikipedia.