Cathedral of San Carlos Borromeo
Encyclopedia
The Cathedral of San Carlos Borromeo, also known as the Royal Presidio Chapel, is a Roman Catholic cathedral
located in Monterey, California
, United States
. The cathedral is the oldest continuously operating parish
and the oldest stone
building in California
. It was built in 1794 making it the oldest (and smallest) serving cathedral along with St. Louis Cathedral
in New Orleans, Louisiana
. It is the only existing presidio chapel in California and the only existing building in the original Monterey Presidio
.
Father Junípero Serra
as the chapel
of Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
on June 3, 1770. Father Serra first established the original mission in Monterey at this location on June 3, 1770, near the native village of Tamo. However, Father Serra became engaged in a heated power struggle with Military Governor Pedro Fages
, who was headquartered at the Presidio of Monterey
and served as governor of Alta California between 1770 and 1774. Serra decided to move the mission away from the Presidio, and in May, 1771, the viceroy approved Serra's petition to relocate the mission to its current location near the mouth of the Carmel River and the present-day town of Carmel-by-the-Sea. The new mission was named Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
.
When the mission was moved, the existing wood and adobe
building became the San Jose
Chapel for the Presidio of Monterey
. Monterey became the capital of the Province of Californias in 1777 and the chapel was renamed the Royal Presidio Chapel. The original church was destroyed by fire in 1789 and was replaced by the present sandstone
structure. It was completed in 1794 by Indian labor in the form of a Latin Cross. In 1840, the chapel was rededicated to the patronage of Saint Charles Borromeo.
In 1849, the chapel was selected to be the Pro-Cathedral
of the Diocese of Monterey by Bishop Joseph Alemany. After Alemany became Archbishop of San Francisco
, his successor Thaddeus Amat y Brusi
moved the cathedral
to Mission Santa Barbara
, to be closer to the population in Los Angeles
.
Herbert Hoover
and Lou Henry were married February 10, 1899 by Father Ramon Mestres who was serving at the Chapel; Hoover was the first President to be married by a Catholic priest. The wedding took place not at the Chapel, but in the Henry home. Father Mestres had received special dispensation from the bishop to perform the civil ceremony because there was no Protestant minister in town at the time.
influence is also evident in the fine architecture. The ornamental arches and portals carved in sandstone make the church unique and arguably the most beautiful of all the Missions. A garden surrounds the gated Mission, with a path leading all the way round and to both San Carlos School and the Rectory of San Carlos Cathedral. To the right of the Cathedral lies a statue of the Virgin Mary with an arch beneath. At the rear of the building is the Junipero Oak, a California landmark. There is a bell tower
to announce Mass and in the niche at the very top of the façade
there is a statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe
, the oldest non-indigenous sculpture
in the state.
performed the ceremony of taking possession of Las Californias
in the name of Crown of Spain under this native oak tree. Right Reverend Monsignor Ramón M. Mestres installed the Junipero Oak tree trunk at the rear of the Royal Presidio Chapel, where it remains today. The trunk is being preserved with crude oil and creosote and is held together by a wire frame. It is mounted on a concrete pedestal and is filled with concrete where it gets eaten away.
.
#NPS-66000216 as a National Historic Landmark
by the National Park Service
. The chapel again became the cathedral of the Diocese of Monterey when the Diocese of Monterey-Fresno
was split in 1967 to form the Monterey and Fresno dioceses
. The cathedral is the smallest in the contiguous United States
, and one of the two oldest buildings serving as a cathedral in the United States (St. Louis Cathedral
in New Orleans, Louisiana
was also completed in 1794).
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
located in Monterey, California
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The cathedral is the oldest continuously operating parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
and the oldest stone
Masonry
Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar; the term masonry can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are brick, stone, marble, granite, travertine, limestone; concrete block, glass block, stucco, and...
building in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. It was built in 1794 making it the oldest (and smallest) serving cathedral along with St. Louis Cathedral
St. Louis Cathedral, New Orleans
Saint Louis Cathedral , also known as the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans; it has the distinction of being the oldest continuously operating cathedral in the United States...
in New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. It is the only existing presidio chapel in California and the only existing building in the original Monterey Presidio
Presidio of Monterey, California
The Presidio of Monterey, located in Monterey, California, is an active US Army installation with historic ties to the Spanish colonial era. Currently it is the home of the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center .-Spanish fort:...
.
Early history
The church was founded by the FranciscanFranciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
Father Junípero Serra
Junípero Serra
Blessed Junípero Serra, O.F.M., , known as Fra Juníper Serra in Catalan, his mother tongue was a Majorcan Franciscan friar who founded the mission chain in Alta California of the Las Californias Province in New Spain—present day California, United States. Fr...
as the chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
of Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
Mission San Carlos Borroméo del río Carmelo, also known as the Carmel Mission, is a Roman Catholic mission church in Carmel, California. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and a U.S...
on June 3, 1770. Father Serra first established the original mission in Monterey at this location on June 3, 1770, near the native village of Tamo. However, Father Serra became engaged in a heated power struggle with Military Governor Pedro Fages
Pedro Fages
Pere Fages Beleta , nicknamed L'Ós , was a soldier, explorer, and the second Spanish military Governor of Las Californias Province of New Spain from 1770 to 1774, and the Governor of Las Californias from 1782 to 1791.-Life:...
, who was headquartered at the Presidio of Monterey
Presidio of Monterey, California
The Presidio of Monterey, located in Monterey, California, is an active US Army installation with historic ties to the Spanish colonial era. Currently it is the home of the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center .-Spanish fort:...
and served as governor of Alta California between 1770 and 1774. Serra decided to move the mission away from the Presidio, and in May, 1771, the viceroy approved Serra's petition to relocate the mission to its current location near the mouth of the Carmel River and the present-day town of Carmel-by-the-Sea. The new mission was named Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
Mission San Carlos Borroméo del río Carmelo, also known as the Carmel Mission, is a Roman Catholic mission church in Carmel, California. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and a U.S...
.
When the mission was moved, the existing wood and adobe
Adobe
Adobe is a natural building material made from sand, clay, water, and some kind of fibrous or organic material , which the builders shape into bricks using frames and dry in the sun. Adobe buildings are similar to cob and mudbrick buildings. Adobe structures are extremely durable, and account for...
building became the San Jose
Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph is a figure in the Gospels, the husband of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Jesus Christ ....
Chapel for the Presidio of Monterey
Presidio of Monterey, California
The Presidio of Monterey, located in Monterey, California, is an active US Army installation with historic ties to the Spanish colonial era. Currently it is the home of the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center .-Spanish fort:...
. Monterey became the capital of the Province of Californias in 1777 and the chapel was renamed the Royal Presidio Chapel. The original church was destroyed by fire in 1789 and was replaced by the present sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
structure. It was completed in 1794 by Indian labor in the form of a Latin Cross. In 1840, the chapel was rededicated to the patronage of Saint Charles Borromeo.
In 1849, the chapel was selected to be the Pro-Cathedral
Pro-cathedral
A pro-cathedral is a parish church that is temporarily serving as the cathedral or co-cathedral of a diocese.-Usage:In Ireland, the term is used to specifically refer to St Mary's Pro-Cathedral in Dublin, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Dublin since the Reformation, when Christ Church...
of the Diocese of Monterey by Bishop Joseph Alemany. After Alemany became Archbishop of San Francisco
Roman Catholic Archbishop of San Francisco
The Roman Catholic Archbishop of San Francisco is the Archbishop of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco, the Roman Catholic Church in San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin counties in California, the United States...
, his successor Thaddeus Amat y Brusi
Thaddeus Amat y Brusi
Thaddeus Amat y Brusi, C.M. was a Roman Catholic cleric who eventually became Bishop of Los Angeles, California.- Birth and Early Career:Amat was born in the Catalan capital of Barcelona, Spain on December 31, 1810. He was ordained a priest of the religious order of the Congregation of the...
moved the cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
to Mission Santa Barbara
Mission Santa Barbara
In 1840, Alta California and Baja California were removed from the Diocese of Sonora to form the Diocese of Both Californias. Bishop Francisco Garcia Diego y Moreno, OFM, established his cathedra at Mission Santa Barbara, making the chapel the pro-cathedral of the diocese until 1849...
, to be closer to the population in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.
Hoover marriage
Future President of the United StatesPresident of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
and Lou Henry were married February 10, 1899 by Father Ramon Mestres who was serving at the Chapel; Hoover was the first President to be married by a Catholic priest. The wedding took place not at the Chapel, but in the Henry home. Father Mestres had received special dispensation from the bishop to perform the civil ceremony because there was no Protestant minister in town at the time.
Architecture
The Royal Presidio Chapel is the first stone building in California and reflects the exquisite Spanish Colonial style of the late 18th century. The Moorish architectureMoorish architecture
Moorish architecture is the western term used to describe the articulated Berber-Islamic architecture of North Africa and Al-Andalus.-Characteristic elements:...
influence is also evident in the fine architecture. The ornamental arches and portals carved in sandstone make the church unique and arguably the most beautiful of all the Missions. A garden surrounds the gated Mission, with a path leading all the way round and to both San Carlos School and the Rectory of San Carlos Cathedral. To the right of the Cathedral lies a statue of the Virgin Mary with an arch beneath. At the rear of the building is the Junipero Oak, a California landmark. There is a bell tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
to announce Mass and in the niche at the very top of the façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
there is a statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe , also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe is a celebrated Catholic icon of the Virgin Mary.According to tradition, on December 9, 1531 Juan Diego, a simple indigenous peasant, had a vision of a young woman while he was on a hill in the Tepeyac desert, near Mexico City. The lady...
, the oldest non-indigenous sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
in the state.
The Vizcaíno-Serra Oak (The Junipero Oak)
Father Junipero SerraJunípero Serra
Blessed Junípero Serra, O.F.M., , known as Fra Juníper Serra in Catalan, his mother tongue was a Majorcan Franciscan friar who founded the mission chain in Alta California of the Las Californias Province in New Spain—present day California, United States. Fr...
performed the ceremony of taking possession of Las Californias
Las Californias
The Californias, or in — - was the name given by the Spanish to their northwestern territory of New Spain, comprising the present day states of Baja California and Baja California Sur on the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico; and the present day U.S. state of California in the United States of...
in the name of Crown of Spain under this native oak tree. Right Reverend Monsignor Ramón M. Mestres installed the Junipero Oak tree trunk at the rear of the Royal Presidio Chapel, where it remains today. The trunk is being preserved with crude oil and creosote and is held together by a wire frame. It is mounted on a concrete pedestal and is filled with concrete where it gets eaten away.
San Carlos School
Right Reverend Monsignor Rámon M. Mestres founded San Carlos School in 1898. The Catholic school is still running today and lies directly to the right of the Rectory of San Carlos Cathedral. Originally, it also served as a school and convent combined, but today the lay teachers live off campus.Carmel Mission
The mission near the mouth of the Carmel River was named Mission San Carlos Borromeo de CarmeloMission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo
Mission San Carlos Borroméo del río Carmelo, also known as the Carmel Mission, is a Roman Catholic mission church in Carmel, California. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and a U.S...
.
Historic designation
In 1960, the chapel was listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
#NPS-66000216 as a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
by the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
. The chapel again became the cathedral of the Diocese of Monterey when the Diocese of Monterey-Fresno
Roman Catholic Diocese of Monterey-Fresno
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Monterey-Fresno was formerly a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in California, United States. The diocese was composed of the present dioceses of Monterey and Fresno The diocese was erected in 1922—split off from the former Diocese of Monterey-Los...
was split in 1967 to form the Monterey and Fresno dioceses
Roman Catholic Diocese of Fresno
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fresno is a particular church of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in the western region of the United States, in the State of California. It is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles...
. The cathedral is the smallest in the contiguous United States
Contiguous United States
The contiguous United States are the 48 U.S. states on the continent of North America that are south of Canada and north of Mexico, plus the District of Columbia....
, and one of the two oldest buildings serving as a cathedral in the United States (St. Louis Cathedral
St. Louis Cathedral, New Orleans
Saint Louis Cathedral , also known as the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans; it has the distinction of being the oldest continuously operating cathedral in the United States...
in New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
was also completed in 1794).
Other historic designations
- California Historical LandmarkCalifornia Historical LandmarkCalifornia Historical Landmarks are buildings, structures, sites, or places in the state of California that have been determined to have statewide historical significance by meeting at least one of the criteria listed below:...
#105 — Royal Presidio Chapel - California Historical LandmarkCalifornia Historical LandmarkCalifornia Historical Landmarks are buildings, structures, sites, or places in the state of California that have been determined to have statewide historical significance by meeting at least one of the criteria listed below:...
#128 — Landing Place of Sebastian Vizcaíno and Fray Junípero Serra
External links
- Official Cathedral of San Carlos Borromeo website
- National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary: Early History of the California Coast
- Cathedrals of California
- Cathedral Listing: drawings and photographs at the Historic American Buildings SurveyHistoric American Buildings SurveyThe Historic American Buildings Survey , Historic American Engineering Record , and Historic American Landscapes Survey are programs of the National Park Service established for the purpose of documenting historic places. Records consists of measured drawings, archival photographs, and written...
- San Carlos Borromeo Cathedral history tour
- San Carlos Borromeo Cathedral Museum