Xanten Cathedral

Xanten Cathedral

Xanten Cathedral ( _de. Xantener Dom), sometimes called St. Victor's Cathedral ( _de. St. Viktor Dom), is a Roman Catholic church situated in Xanten, a historic town in the lower Rhine area, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is considered the "biggest cathedral between Cologne and the sea". In 1936 it was declared a minor basilica by Pope Pius XI. [cite web
last = Chow
first = Gabriel
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Basilicas in Germany
work = Giga-Catholic Information
publisher =
date =
url = http://www.gcatholic.com/churches/data/basDE.htm
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-03-18] Even though the church is called a cathedral it has never been the seat of a bishop.

The cathedral owes its name to Victor of Xanten, a member of the Theban Legion who was supposedly executed in the 4th century in the amphitheater of Castra Vetera for refusing to sacrifice to the Roman gods. This Roman camp is near today's town of Birten. According to legend, Helena of Constantinople recovered the bones of Victor and his legion and erected a chapel in their honour. During a modern excavation the existence of a 4th-century cella memoriae was discovered; however, it was determined that it had not been erected for Victor but for two other male corpses that were placed in the crypt at a later date.

The cornerstone of the cathedral was laid in 1263 by Friedrich and Konrad von Hochstaden. Construction lasted 281 years and was finally finished with the dedication of the Holy Spirit Chapel (German: "Heiliger-Geist-Kapelle") in the year 1544. The cathedral contains a five-aisle nave built in the Gothic style. In contrast to many other cathedrals of the period, St. Victor's lacks an ambulatory. Instead a twin pair of chapels is connected to the choir similar to that seen at the Church of Our Lady (German: "Liebfrauenkirche") in Trier. Along with the monasterial library of the Cathedral houses one of the most important religious libraries of the Lower Rhine. Today the cathedral is the see of the auxiliary bishop Heinrich Janssen who presides over the Lower Rhine part of the Diocese of Münster.

References

External links

* [http://www.xanten.de/en/tourism/sights/st_victors_cathedral_a_majestic_church/index.php St. Victor's Cathedral]
* [http://www.st-viktor-xanten.de/viktormain.swf St. Victor's Cathedral] - "Official site"
* [http://www.xantener-dombauverein.de/ Xantener Dombauverein]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Xanten — Xanten …   Wikipedia

  • Viktor of Xanten — Infobox Saint name= Saint Victor of Xanten birth date= death date=4th century feast day= October 10 venerated in= Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church imagesize= 200px caption= Statue of Saint Victor outside of Xanten Cathedral birth… …   Wikipedia

  • Norbert of Xanten — For other uses, see St. Norbert (disambiguation). Saint Norbert of Xanten Saint Norbert of Xanten Bishop and Confessor Born c. 1080 Gennep or Xanten, Electorate of Cologne …   Wikipedia

  • Cathedrale Saint-Victor de Xanten — Cathédrale Saint Victor de Xanten Cahédrale de Xanten avec l obelisque de de Pauw La cathédrale Saint Victor (en allemand: Sankt Viktor Dom), appelé communément cathédrale de Xanten (en allemand: Xantener Dom), est une cathédrale catholique… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Cathédrale Saint-Victor De Xanten — Cahédrale de Xanten avec l obelisque de de Pauw La cathédrale Saint Victor (en allemand: Sankt Viktor Dom), appelé communément cathédrale de Xanten (en allemand: Xantener Dom), est une cathédrale catholique romaine située à Xanten, dans le Land… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Cathédrale saint-victor de xanten — Cahédrale de Xanten avec l obelisque de de Pauw La cathédrale Saint Victor (en allemand: Sankt Viktor Dom), appelé communément cathédrale de Xanten (en allemand: Xantener Dom), est une cathédrale catholique romaine située à Xanten, dans le Land… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Limburg Cathedral — The Catholic Cathedral of Limburg, also known as Georgsdom or Limburger Dom in German after its dedication to Saint George, is located above the old town of Limburg in Hesse, Germany. Its high location on a rock above the Lahn provides its… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Christian religious houses in North Rhine-Westphalia — This is a list of Christian religious houses, both for men and for women, whether or not still in operation, in North Rhine Westphalia, Germany. Most religious houses survived the Reformation, although many nunneries did so by becoming Lutheran… …   Wikipedia

  • List of cathedrals — This is a list of cathedrals around the world, including both actual cathedrals (seats of bishops in episcopal denominations, such as Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Orthodoxy) and a few prominent churches from non episcopal denominations commonly… …   Wikipedia

  • Dryburgh Abbey — Monastery information Order Premonstratensian Established 1150 …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”