Church Architecture

The Pantheon in the city of Rome is an Ancient Roman temple that was repurposed as a Catholic Church in the 7th century. The church was dedicated to “St. Mary and the Martyrs” and is commonly known as the “Santa Maria Rotonda.”  The original temple was constructed as early as the reign of Roman Emperor Augustus but was rebuilt several times, first by Trajan and finally completed by Hadrian in the year 126 A.D. The main building is famous because it has an opening at the top of its massive dome.

St. Peter's Basilica is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. It was initially planned in the 15th century by Pope Nicholas V and then Pope Julius II to replace the ageing Old St. Peter's Basilica, which was built in the fourth century by Roman emperor Constantine the Great.

St. Peter's is famous as a place of pilgrimage and for its liturgical functions. The pope presides at a number of liturgies throughout the year both within the basilica or the adjoining St. Peter's Square; these liturgies draw audiences numbering from 15,000 to over 80,000 people. St. Peter's has many historical associations, with the early Christian Church, the Papacy, the Protestant Reformation and Catholic Counter-Reformation and numerous artists, especially Michelangelo. As a work of architecture, it is regarded as the greatest building of its age. St. Peter's is one of the four churches in the world that hold the rank of Major papal basilica, all four of which are in Rome, and is also one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome.

The Pisa Cathedral Complex, known simply as Cathedral Square (Piazza del Duomo), houses one of the world’s most celebrated ecclesiastical landscapes. In addition to the cathedral itself, the Pisa Cathedral Complex includes a church, a baptistery, a cemetery and one very famous campanile or bell tower – better known as the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

The cathedral  was funded by the spoils received fighting against the Muslims in Sicily in 1063.

Another name often given to the Pisa Cathedral Complex is Piazza dei Miracoli (Miracle Square).

The Porto Cathedral (Sé do Porto) is a Roman Catholic church located in the historical center of the city of Porto, Portugal. It is one of the city's oldest monuments and one of the most important local Romanesque monuments. 

Reims Cathedral, cathedral located in the city of Reims, France, on the Vesle River east-northeast of Paris. The cathedral was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and was the traditional location for the coronation of the kings of France. Reims Cathedral is considered to be one of the most important pieces of Gothic architecture.

Reims was the site of 25 coronations of the kings of France, from Louis VIII in 1223 to Charles X in 1825, including the crowning of Charles VII in 1429 in the presence of Joan of Arc. The cathedral, which was begun in 1211 under the auspices of Archbishop Aubry de Humbert and designer Jean d’Orbais, was modeled on Chartres Cathedral (begun about 1194) and was intended to replace an earlier church destroyed by fire in 1210. 

The main construction was overseen by four different architects and lasted some 80 years; expansions and decorative work continued on the church for centuries.

 
Rio de Janeiro Cathedral is officially known as the Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Sebastian or the “Catedral Metropolitana de São Sebastião.” It is dedicated to Saint Sebastian, a 3rd-century Christian martyr and the patron saint of Rio de Janeiro. The cathedral was completed during the 1970s and replaced an 18th-century church that is now referred to as the “Old Cathedral.”

Our Lady, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church located in the Old West End of Toledo, Ohio. The cathedral is the mother church of the 122 parishes in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo.

Rouen Cathedral (Cathédrale primatiale Notre-Dame de l'Assomption de Rouen) is a Catholic church in Rouen, Normandy, France. It is famous for its three towers, each in a different style.

Christianity was established in Rouen in about 260. The first church is believed to have been under or close to the present cathedral. In 395, a large basilica with three naves was built at the same site. In 755, the first Chapter of the cathedral was established and several courtyards and buildings around the church were built.

The cathedral was enlarged by St. Ouen in 650, and visited by Charlemagne in 769. However, beginning in 841, a series of Viking raids seriously damaged the cathedral complex.

The Viking leader Rollo became first Duke of the Duchy of Normandy and was baptised in the Carolingian cathedral in 915 and buried there in 933. His grandson, Richard I of Normandy, further enlarged it in 950.

The St Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral, Nice ( Cathédrale Orthodoxe Saint-Nicolas de Nice) is an Eastern Orthodox cathedral located in the French city of Nice. Property of the Russian Federation, it is recognized as a national monument of France, and it currently belongs to the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate. It is the largest Eastern Orthodox cathedral in Western Europe.

The cathedral was opened in 1912, thanks to the generosity of Russia's Tsar Nicholas II. From 1931 until 15 December 2011 the parish that occupied the cathedral was part of the Paris-based Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe under the jurisdiction of the Church of Constantinople. After 2011, following a final ruling by France's highest court, the Court of Cassation, the cathedral was declared to be property of the Russian state, and the congregation came under the jurisdiction of the Korsun diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church. 

The Sacré-Coeur is also referred to as the “Basilica of the Sacred Heart” and is a majestic church located on Montmartre Hill, the highest point in Paris. It is a Catholic church and minor basilica in Paris dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Sacred Heart Cathedral, located in Davenport, Iowa, United States, is a Catholic cathedral and a parish church in the Diocese of Davenport. In 1856, the Bishop of Dubuque laid the cornerstone for the church. The church was named St. Margaret (or sometimes listed as St. Marguerite) in honor of St. Margaret of Scotland and Marguerite LeClaire. The church was built of red brick in the Romanesque Revival style.

Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, located in  Yerevan, Armeni, is a relatively new church. Also known as the Cathedral of Yerevan, Saint Gregory the Illuminator is the largest cathedral of the Armenian Apostolic Church worldwide.