Maguelone Cathedral
| Maguelone Cathedrale | |
|---|---|
| Cathédrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Maguelone | |
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 Maguelone Cathedrale
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| 43°31′00″N 3°53′31″E / 43.516689°N 03.891907°ECoordinates: 43°31′00″N 3°53′31″E / 43.516689°N 03.891907°E | |
| Country | France |
| Denomination | Catholic |
| Previous denomination | Hérault, Languedoc-Roussillon |
| Website | www |
| History | |
| Dedication | St Peter and St Paul |
| Consecrated | 1054 |
| Architecture | |
| Status | Cathedral |
| Functional status | Preserved |
| Heritage designation | Monument historique |
| Designated | 1840 |
| Architectural type | church |
| Style | Romanesque |
| Closed | 1632 |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Maguelone (until 1563) Montpellier |
Maguelone Cathedral (Cathédrale Saint-Pierre de Maguelone or Cathédrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Maguelone) is a former Roman Catholic cathedral located around 6 miles (9.7 km) south of Montpellier in the Hérault department of southern France. The building stands on an isthmus between the Étang de l'Arnel lake and the Mediterranean Sea in the Gulf of Lion, which was once the site of the original city of Maguelone, opposite the present-day town of Villeneuve-lès-Maguelone.
Maguelone Cathedral was once the episcopal seat of the former Bishop of Maguelone until 1563, when the see was transferred to the newly created Bishopric of Montpellier. The cathedral, constructed when the see was returned here in the 11th century from Substantion by Bishop Arnaud (1030-1060), is a Romanesque fortified building. Although parts, such as the towers, have been demolished, the main body of the building remains functional and is a registered national monument. It is run by a dedicated preservation society, les Compagnons de Maguelone, and is used for both religious and secular purposes.
During archaeological excavations in 1967, Roman and Etruscan remains and a number of Visigothic sarcophagi were discovered on this ancient island. The foundations of a church destroyed in the 7th century were also found.
At the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century AD, the Visigoths took over part of the region of Melgueil, the island of Maguelone. Christianity gradually imposed its rule on the area. From 533, a bishopric was established on the island. The first bishops were Boethius (until 589), Genies (or Genesius, 597-633?) and a church-cathedral existed on the island. The bishopric of Maguelone appears in the texts at the end of the 6th century, on an island which was said to have been inhabited in antiquity.
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Wikipedia