Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
| Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception | |
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| Patronal church of the United States of America | |
Main façade of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
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 Location of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.
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| 38°56′0″N 77°0′02″W / 38.93333°N 77.00056°WCoordinates: 38°56′0″N 77°0′02″W / 38.93333°N 77.00056°W | |
| Location | Washington, D.C. |
| Country | United States |
| Denomination | Catholic |
| Tradition | Roman Rite |
| Website | Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception |
| Architecture | |
| Status | Minor basilica, National shrine |
| Architect(s) | Maginnis & Walsh |
| Architectural type | Basilica |
| Style | Neo-Byzantine and Neo-Romanesque |
| Groundbreaking | 1920 |
| Completed | 1961 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 10,000 |
| Length | 500 feet (150 m) |
| Width | 240 feet (73 m) |
| Nave width | 157 feet (48 m) |
| Height | 329 feet (100 m) |
| Dome height (outer) | 237 feet (72 m) |
| Dome height (inner) | 159 feet (48 m) |
| Dome diameter (outer) | 108 feet (33 m) |
| Dome diameter (inner) | 89 feet (27 m) |
| Administration | |
| Archdiocese | Archdiocese of Washington |
| Clergy | |
| Rector | Monsignor Walter R. Rossi |
| Priest(s) | Walter R. Rossi Vito A. Buonanno Michael D. Weston Raymond A. Lebrun |
| Laity | |
| Director of music | Dr. Peter Latona |
| Organist(s) | Peter Latona Benjamin Laprarie Nathan Davy Robert Grogan |
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is a prominent Roman Rite Catholic basilica located in Washington, D.C., United States of America, honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Immaculate Conception, the principal Patroness of the USA.
The shrine is the largest Catholic church in the United States and North America, one of the ten largest churches in the world, and the tallest habitable building in Washington, D.C. Construction of this church, notable for its Neo-Byzantine architecture, began in 1920 under Philadelphia contractor John McShain. It opened unfinished in 1959 and currently hosts an estimated one million pilgrims each year.
The basilica is designated both as the national and patronal Catholic Church of the United States, honoring the Virgin Mary, under the title Immaculate Conception, by which Pope Pius XI donated a mosaic of the same image in 1923. The basilica is not the cathedral church of the Archdiocese of Washington as the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle has served in this capacity since the creation of the archdiocese in 1939.
The shrine hosted Popes John Paul II, who designated the National Shrine as a Minor Basilica on October 12, 1990; Benedict XVI, who bestowed the honor of a Golden Rose on the basilica on April 16, 2008; and Francis, when he celebrated Mass on the east steps for the canonization of Junípero Serra, O.F.M. on September 23, 2015.
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