Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi

Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi
Location	Santa Fe, New Mexico
Country	United States
Denomination	Catholic Church
Website	www.cbsfa.org
History
Founded	1714 (parish)
Dedication	St. Francis of Assisi
Dedicated	1887
Architecture
Status	Cathedral/Parish
Functional status	Active
Style	Romanesque Revival
Years built	1869-1887
Administration
Archdiocese	Santa Fe
Clergy
Archbishop	Most Rev. John Wester
Rector	Rev. Adam Lee Ortega y Ortiz
St. Francis Cathedral
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
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Location	131 Cathedral Place Santa Fe, New Mexico
Coordinates	35°41′11.4″N 105°56′10.68″W / 35.686500°N 105.9363000°W / 35.686500; -105.9363000Coordinates: 35°41′11.4″N 105°56′10.68″W / 35.686500°N 105.9363000°W / 35.686500; -105.9363000
Part of	Santa Fe Historic District (#73001150)
Added to NRHP	July 23, 1973

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 older church on the same site, built in 1626, was destroyed in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt. The new cathedral was built around La Parroquia, which was dismantled once the new construction was complete. A small chapel on the north side of the cathedral was kept from 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 and truncated square towers. The large rose window in front and those of the Twelve Apostles in the lateral nave windows were imported from Clermont-Ferrand in France. The towers were originally planned to be topped with dramatic 160-foot (49 m) steeples, but due to lack of funds, these were never built. The left tower is a single row of bricks taller than the right tower. The cathedral was built from yellow limestone blocks quarried near the present site of Lamy. A 2005 addition to the upper facade of the cathedral is a small, round window featuring a dove, the symbol of the Holy Spirit. It is a stained glass replica of the translucent alabaster window designed in the 17th century by the Italian artist Bernini for St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City.