St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne

St Patrick's Cathedral
Cathedral Church and Minor Basilica of Saint Patrick
Gothic Revival central tower of St Patrick's Cathedral
St Patrick's Cathedral
37°48′36″S 144°58′34″E / 37.81000°S 144.97611°E / -37.81000; 144.97611Coordinates: 37°48′36″S 144°58′34″E / 37.81000°S 144.97611°E / -37.81000; 144.97611
Location	Melbourne, Australia
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Website	[1]
History
Dedication	St Patrick
Dedicated	1851
Consecrated	1897
Architecture
Status	Cathedral, minor basilica
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	William Wardell
Groundbreaking	1858
Completed	1939
Specifications
Length	103.6 metres (340 ft)
Width	56.4 metres (185 ft)
Nave width	25.3 metres (83 ft)
Nave height	28.9 metres (95 ft)
Number of spires	3
Spire height	105 metres (344 ft)
Administration
Parish	St Patrick's
Archdiocese	Metropolitan Archdiocese of Melbourne
Metropolis	Melbourne
Province	Melbourne
District	Melbourne
Clergy
Archbishop	Denis Hart

The Cathedral Church and Minor Basilica of Saint Patrick (colloquially St Patrick's Cathedral) is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, and seat of its archbishop, currently Denis Hart.

In 1974 Pope Paul VI conferred the title and dignity of minor basilica on it. In 1986 Pope John Paul II visited the cathedral and addressed clergy during his Papal Visit.

The cathedral is built on a traditional east–west axis, with the altar at the eastern end, symbolising belief in the resurrection of Christ. The plan is in the style of a Latin cross, consisting of a nave with side aisles, transepts with side aisles, a sanctuary with seven chapels, and sacristies. Although its 103.6-metre (340 ft) length is marginally shorter than that of St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney, St Patrick's has the distinction of being both the tallest and, overall, the largest church building in Australia.

The cathedral is located on Eastern Hill in Melbourne, in an area bounded by Albert Street, Gisborne Street, Lansdowne Street and Cathedral Place. Just to the east across Gisborne Street is St Peter's Church, constructed from 1846 to 1848, which is the Anglican parish church of Melbourne.

In 1848, the Augustinian friar James Goold was appointed the first bishop of Melbourne and became the fourth bishop in Australia, after Sydney, Hobart and Adelaide. Negotiations with the colonial government for the grant of five acres of land for a church in the Eastern Hill area began in 1848. On 1 April 1851, only 16 years after the foundation of Melbourne, the Colonial Secretary of Victoria finally granted the site to the Roman Catholic Church.