Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Notre Dame
| Basilica of the Sacred Heart | |
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The exterior of the Basilica seen by Main Quad
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| Location |
University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, Indiana |
| Country | United States |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| History | |
| Consecrated | August 15, 1888 |
| Architecture | |
| Status | University church Mother church of the Congregation of Holy Cross |
| Functional status | Active |
| Architect(s) | Edward Sorin, Alexis Granger |
| Architectural type | Basilica |
| Style | Gothic Revival |
| Groundbreaking | 1870 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 1,000 |
| Length | 275 feet (84 m) |
| Width | 114 feet (35 m) |
| Height | 218 feet (66 m) |
| Materials | Brick, limestone |
| Bells | 23 (1867) |
| Tenor bell weight | 7 long tons 0 cwt (15,700 lb or 7.1 t) |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Fort Wayne–South Bend |
| Clergy | |
| Rector | Rev. Peter D. Rocca, C.S.C. |
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Basilica of the Sacred Heart
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| Location | Notre Dame, Indiana |
| Coordinates | 41°42′8.2764″N 86°14′17.4516″W / 41.702299000°N 86.238181000°WCoordinates: 41°42′8.2764″N 86°14′17.4516″W / 41.702299000°N 86.238181000°W |
| Built | 1871-1888 |
| Architect | Father Alexis Granger, Father Edward Sorin and Brother Charles Harding |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| Part of | University of Notre Dame: Main and North Quadrangles (#78000053) |
| Added to NRHP | May 23, 1978 |
The Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Notre Dame, Indiana, USA, is a Roman Catholic church on the campus of the University of Notre Dame, also serving as the mother church of the Congregation of Holy Cross in the United States. The neo-gothic church has 44 large stained glass windows and murals completed over a 17-year period by the Vatican painter Luigi Gregori. The basilica bell tower is 218 feet (66 m) high, making it the tallest University chapel in America.
It is consistently ranked among the most beautiful university churches in the country and around the world.
When the University of Notre Dame was first established by Rev. Edward Sorin, CSC, the community held religious services in a small log cabin built between 1842 and 1843.
The growth of the institution required a proper church, and it was decided to spend $1500 in building a new edifice. The project was begun on May 25, 1848 and was dedicated on November 12 of the following year. Its solemn consecration took place a year later, on November 11, 1849, by the hands of the Bishop of Vincennes, Maurice de St. Palais. Father Sorin describes the first church: "The style is Greek, with rounded arches. There are three vaults and six columns which produce a very pretty effect. The tribune, which has been built for the use of the Sisters, is elliptical like the sanctuary. It is already enriched with an organ of Mr. H. Erben, and, though a little weak for the church, is one of its most precious ornaments."
After the church was built, a bell was transferred to its belfry. In the spring of 1851, the wind swept belfry and bell to the ground. A greater bell, weighing three thousand, two hundred and twenty pounds, was purchased that summer in Cincinnati. It was elevated to one of the towers that had been built at the front of the church. After being blessed on the feast of the Assumption.
The University's needs soon outgrew the small first church and in 1868 In the spring of 1869 it was decided to build a new church dedicated to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, despite the lack of funds in the university's treasury.
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Wikipedia