Basilicas in Spain—Tarragona—1

I blogged about the following basilica on January 3, 2020.

• Metropolitan Cathedral Basilica of St. Thecla, Tarragona.

Collegiate Basilica of St. Mary, Manresa, Barcelona

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Leo XIII in 1886.

The Catalan Gothic church was built in the 14th Century and incorporates parts of two earlier churches.  It has a baroque chapel and 14th Century altarpieces.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter, Vic, Barcelona

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Leo XIII in 1893.

The basilica is the cathedral for the Diocese of Vic.  The church was originally built in the 11th Century but has been renovated and enlarged many times over the centuries.  As a result, it incorporates many styles including Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque, and Neoclassical. 

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Cathedral Basilica of St. Mary, Girona, Girona

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Leo XIII in 1900.

The basilica is the cathedral for the Diocese of Girona and it replaced an earlier church.  Construction began on this church in 1015 and followed a Romanesque style.  Construction continued in the 13th Century using a Gothic style and a Baroque façade was added in the 17th Century.  The nave is the widest Gothic nave in the world (75 feet).  The cathedral has several artistic treasures including a 10th Century illuminated manuscript.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Cathedral Basilica St. Mary of Urgell, La Seu d’Urgell, Lleida

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius X in 1905.

The basilica is the cathedral for the Diocese of Urgell.  The Romanesque church was built in the 12th Century.  The façade has Italianate ornamentation.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Cathedral Basilica of the Virgin of Sorrows, Tortosa, Tarragona

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Benedict XV in 1919.

The basilica is the cathedral of the Diocese of Tortosa.  A mosque was converted into a cathedral in 1148 and within a few years a Romanesque cathedral was erected on this site.  Construction of the current Gothic church was started in 1347 at the same location which incorporated some of the Romanesque building.  Construction continued into the 17th Century when Baroque elements were added to the church. 

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of the Mother of God in Valldeflors. Tremp, Lleida

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1923.

Churches dedicated to Our Lady have been on this site since at least the 8th Century, including one in which the construction was ordered by Charlemagne.  The current church dates to the mid-17th Century and is mostly Gothic with Renaissance and Baroque elements.  

The first two pictures are from local sources and the last is from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Mary, Igualada, Barcelona

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1948.

The current church was built in the 17th Century to replace an earlier church.  It employs a variety of architectural styles and was converted to a market during the Spanish Civil War.  It has since been restored.  There are 12 side chapels.

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

Cathedral Basilica of St. Mary, Solsona, Lleida

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XII in 1953.

The basilica is the cathedral for the Diocese of Solsona.  It was constructed between the 12th and 18th Centuries and uses Gothic, Romanesque, and Baroque architectural features.  The church has a 12th Century stone carving of the Virgin of the Cloister.

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

 

Basilicas in France—Alsace and Poitou-Charentes

Alsace

Basilica of Our Lady of Marienthal, Marienthal, Bas-Rhin, Grand-Est

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Leo XIII in 1892.

A church was built here in the 13th Century, but the current Gothic Revival church was built between 1863 and 1866.  A Madonna and a Pieta date to the early 15th Century.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Lutterbach, Haut-Rhin, Grand-Est

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1922.

The Neo-Romanesque church was built between 1905 and 1908 to replace an 18th Century Baroque church.  The church was heavily damaged during the Second World War, but reopened in 1953.

The top picture is from TripAdvisor and the other two are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of Our Lady of Thierenbach, Jungholtz, Haut-Rhin, Grand-Est

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1936.

Benedictine monks evangelized this area around 730.  A young man was said to have been miraculously cured here in the 12th Century and this attracted the attention of the Abbot of Cluny.  Impressed by the area’s beauty and the number of pilgrims that it attracted, he opened a Cluniac priory in 1130.  The Cluny monks remained here until 1790 when they left due to the French Revolution.  The church has been destroyed many times due to war and fire and the current building dates to 1932.  

The first two pictures are from local sources and the other two are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of Our Lady of Mont Sainte-Odile, Ottrott, Bas-Rhin, Grand-Est

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Benedict XVI in 2006.

The Duke of Alsace built a castle here in the 7th Century on top of a mountain 2,500 feet above sea level.  His daughter, St. Odile, converted the castle to a convent.  The convent church, which is the basilica, was built in a Baroque style between 1687 and 1692.  Over 1.3 million pilgrims come here every year, and perpetual adoration has been ongoing since 1931.

The first two pictures are from local sources and the other two are from Wikipedia.

Poitou-Charentes

I blogged about the following basilica on May 20, 2019.

• Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter, Poitiers.

Co-Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter, Saintes, Charente-Maritime, Nouvelle-Aquitaine

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius IX in 1870.

The basilica is the co-cathedral for the Diocese of La Rochelle.  It was built between the 12th and 17th Centuries in a Flamboyant Gothic style.  The church was heavily damaged by Huguenot soldiers in 1568 but was mostly restored. 

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of St. Eutrope, Saintes, Charente-Maritime, Nouvelle-Aquitaine

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Leo XIII in 1886.

The church was constructed between 1081 and the 15th Century employing Flamboyant Gothic and Romanesque styles.  Named for an early bishop and martyr, it was a stop on one of the pilgrimage roads to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.  It was staffed by monks from the Abbey of Cluny for several centuries up until the French Revolution.  By the beginning of the 19th Century, the church had physically deteriorated and had to be largely rebuilt.

All pictures are from Wikipedia.

Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy, La Chapelle-Saint-Laurent, Deux Sevres, Nouvelle-Aquitaine

Declared a minor basilica by Pope Paul VI in 1964.

The Gothic church was constructed between 1891 and 1933.  It replaced an earlier church built to house a statue of the Virgin Mary discovered in the 16th Century.  Mary has been venerated at this site by pilgrims since that time. 

Pictures are from TripAdvisor and Wikipedia.