Church Architecture

Bordeaux Cathedral, officially known as the Primatial Cathedral of St Andrew of Bordeaux (Cathédrale-Primatiale Saint-André de Bordeaux), is a Catholic church dedicated to Saint Andrew and located in Bordeaux, France.

A church of Saint-André was first mentioned in Bordeaux in documents dating from 814, in the Carolingian period. This church was probably part of group of churches,  located in the old castrum or Roman fortified town. It appears more officially in 1096 in a document from the chancellery of Duke William IX of Aquitaine. In that year it was formally consecrated by Pope Urban II.

Bourges Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church located in Bourges, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Stephen. It was built atop an earlier Romanesque church from 1195 until 1230,

Christianity was brought to the area by Saint Ursinus of Bourges in about 300 A.D. He is considered the first Bishop. a church at the site was mentioned in the 6th Century and it was rebuilt in the 9th Century. Between 1013 and 1030 a new and larger cathedral was constructed and placed against the city wall. In about 1100, King Philip I of France added Bourges and its province to his growing kingdom. In 1145 his son Louis VII of France presented his new wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and she was formally crowned Queen of France in the old Gothic cathedral in Bourges. The Cathedral was expanded in 1150 and again in 1181.  n 1424 the cathedral was furnished with a technological novelty, the Bourges astronomical clock, still functional after many repairs

The Cathedral of Braga ( Sé de Braga) is a Roman Catholic church in the northern city of Braga, Portugal. Due to its long history and artistic significance, it is also one of the most important buildings in the country.

The Diocese of Braga dates from the 3rd century AD, being one of the oldest in the peninsula and the center for the Christianisation of Gallaecia (Northwestern Iberia).

Saint Peter of Rates or of Braga, is traditionally considered to be the first bishop of Braga between the years 45 and 60. Tradition says he was a Jew that had recently died when Saint James the Great was in the area. The Apostle knowing him to be a man of intelligence and good will had him resurrected from the grave and ordained him to preach the glory of Christ. The same tradition holds that Peter of Rates was martyred while attempting to make converts to the Christian faith in northern Portugal.  Bishop Martin of Dumio, a great religious figure of the time, converted the population to Catholicism around 550. Around 1071 the city was back in Christian hands, and the work was started to build a cathedral. The Cathedral of Braga was the first Portuguese cathedral, erected several decades before the founding of the country when it was part of the Kingdom of León. It was concecrated and dedicated to the Virgin Mary by Bishop Pedro in a solemn session on August 28, 1089. 

The cathedral was the most important religious site in Iberia (before the founding of Santiago of Compostela and the reconquest of Toledo from Muslim hands) was an extremely powerful institution at the time and enjoyed a great degree of influence in the papal court.

Canterbury Cathedral (Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Christ, Canterbury)  is the cathedral of the archbishop of Canterbury, the leader of the Church of England and symbolic leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Located in Canterbury, Kent, UK, it is one of the oldest Christian structures in England. 

Built in a beautiful Baroque style, the Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar, as it is known in English, it is a Catholic Church and one of Zaragoza, Spain's most popular attractions. While it was only erected in 1681, numerous chapels and churches have been built on the same spot, ever since the Mother of God was miraculously sighted on the banks of the Ebro in 40 AD.  It is reputed to be the first church dedicated to Mary in history.

Local traditions and history of this basilica relate io the spread of Christianity in Roman Spain attributing to an apparition to Saint James the Great, the apostle who is believed by tradition to have brought Christianity to the country. This is the only reported apparition of Mary to have occurred before her believed Assumption.

The Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Amiens, also known as simply Amiens Cathedral, is a Catholic cathedral. The cathedral was built almost entirely between 1220 and c. 1270, a very short period of time for a Gothic cathedral, giving it an unusual unity of style. Amiens is an early example of the High Gothic period, and the Rayonnant style of Gothic architecture. The Rayonnant appeared in the triforiuum and clerestory, which were begun in 1236, and in the enlarged high windows of the choir, added in the mid-1250s

The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Peter in Chains is a Catholic cathedral of the Latin Church in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.  It is dedicated to Saint Peter's imprisonment and liberation. 

The church's cornerstone was laid on May 20, 1841, under the direction of then-bishop—later archbishop—John Baptist Purcell, and the church was formally dedicated on November 2, 1845, as the first large church west of the Allegheny Mountains.  On June 29, 2020, Pope Francis conferred the title of minor basilica on St. Peter in Chains.

The Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Denver of the Roman Catholic Church.  The cathedral was raised to the status of minor basilica on Christmas Day 1979. On August 13 and 14, 1993 (for World Youth Day), Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass at the cathedral, one of only a few cathedrals in the United States so honored.

The Guadalajara Cathedral or Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady, located in Guadalajara, Jalisco, is the Roman Catholic cathedral of the Archdiocese of Guadalajara and a minor basilica.

The first cathedral was built in 1541 on the site of the present Templo de Santa Maria de Gracia. This primitive church was built with adobe and a thatched roof. In 1574 a fire severely damaged the building. Work began on a new cathedral and was completed in 1618. 1818, an earthquake shook the city, causing the towers and the dome to collapse. These were replaced, but the new structures were destroyed by a subsequent earthquake in 1849. New towers were completed in 1854.

The cathedral continues to be in danger: it was damaged by earthquakes in 1932, 1957, 1979, 1985, 1995 and 2003. Current threats include a slight tilt of the north tower and structural damage to the dome.

The Cathedral of Christ the King is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of the Diocese of Lexington. The parish was established in 1946. 1988 Pope John Paul II established the Diocese of Lexington,and Christ the King became the cathedral for the new diocese. 

The cathedral parish "seeks transformation by the Holy Spirit to a parish focused on evangelizing, forming, equipping and sending forth missionary disciples of Jesus Christ into the world."

The Cathedral of Évora ( Sé de Évora) is a Roman Catholic church in the city of Évora, Portugal. It is one of the oldest and most important local monuments, lying on the highest spot of the city. 

The Cathedral of Our Lady ( Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Antwerp, Belgium. Today's seat of the Diocese of Antwerp started in 1352 and, although the first stage of construction was ended in 1521, has never been 'completed'.