Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi
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The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi, commonly known as Saint Francis Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in downtown Santa Fe, New Mexico. It is the mother church of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.
The cathedral was built by Archbishop Jean Baptiste Lamy between 1869 and 1886 on the site of an older adobe church, La Parroquia (built in 1714-1717). An even earlier church on the same site, built in 1626, had been destroyed in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt. The new cathedral was built around La Parroquia, which was dismantled once construction was complete. A small chapel on the north side of the cathedral is all that remains of the old church.
Influenced by the French-born Archbishop Lamy and in dramatic contrast to the surrounding adobe structures, Saint Francis Cathedral was designed in the Romanesque Revival style. As such, the cathedral features characteristic round arches separated by Corinthian columns, truncated square towers, and even a large rose window, imported from Clermont-Ferrand in France. The towers were originally planned to be topped with dramatic 160-foot steeples, but due to lack of funds these were never built. The cathedral was built from yellow limestone blocks quarried near the present site of Lamy.
The Cathedral of Saint Francis of Assisi was officially elevated to a basilica by Pope Benedict XVI on October 4, 2005, becoming the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi.
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