- Rodez Cathedral
Rodez Cathedral ("Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rodez") is a
Roman Catholic cathedral, and a national monument ofFrance , located in the town ofRodez .It is the seat of the
Bishopric of Rodez .The closed west front once formed part of the city wall of Rodez.
History
Rodez was Christianized in the 4th-5th century AD, and the first mention of a cathedral dates from around 516. This edifice was rebuilt c. 1000: nearly nothing remains of this edifice after the decision to rebuilt it again from scratch in
1276 .The works were halted for many years by the
Black Death and theHundred Years War ; they were restarted only in the early 15th century with the completion of the choir and its vault, as well as thetransept and of the first sectors of the nave. After the fire of1510 , bishopFrançois d'Estaing had it rebuilt in 1513-1526 under the direction of Antoine Salvan with a new majestic bell tower. The cathedral was completed around1531 .Overview
Despite the long construction process, the cathedral is characterized by a remarkable unity of style, which is mostly the Gothic one imported by architect
Jean Deschamps in theMidi from northern France.The cathedral is made of red sandstone. It has a severe façade, flanked by two sturdy towers, which betray its defensive function. The belltower, standing at 87 m, is surmounted by a lantern carrying the statue of the Virgin with a choir of four angels.
External links
* [http://www.scholares.net/index.php?Gazetteer-Rodez Location of the cathedral]
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