Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Bazas
Encyclopedia
Nation
A nation may refer to a community of people who share a common language, culture, ethnicity, descent, and/or history. In this definition, a nation has no physical borders. However, it can also refer to people who share a common territory and government irrespective of their ethnic make-up...
al monument
Monument
A monument is a type of structure either explicitly created to commemorate a person or important event or which has become important to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, or simply as an example of historic architecture...
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, located in Bazas
Bazas
Bazas is a commune in the Gironde department in southwestern France.-Geography:Bazas stands on a narrow promontory above the Beuve valley 60 km/37 mi southeast of Bordeaux and 40 km/25 mi southwest of Marmande.-History:...
, Gironde
Gironde
For the Revolutionary party, see Girondists.Gironde is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France.-History:...
.
Bazas was the seat of the Bishop of Bazas until the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
(after which it was not restored but was instead, by the Concordat of 1801
Concordat of 1801
The Concordat of 1801 was an agreement between Napoleon and Pope Pius VII, signed on 15 July 1801. It solidified the Roman Catholic Church as the majority church of France and brought back most of its civil status....
, divided between the dioceses of Bordeaux, Agen and Aire) and its main attraction is still the cathedral dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, so named because the blood of John the Baptist was venerated here. The cathedral dominates the town and stands at the east end of a wide, open space called the parvis.
The cathedral dates mainly from the 13th-14th centuries, and was built on the model of the great Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
cathedrals of northern France. The west front is unique with its three noticeable levels: the first includes the three Gothic portals retaining part of their original 13th century sculpture; the second includes the rose window
Rose window
A Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in churches of the Gothic architectural style and being divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery...
from 1537; and the third is a Neoclassical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
gable from 1723. The belfry on the north is part 11th century up to the openings.
The interior consists of a long, narrow nave, with no transept, and was entirely rebuilt from 1583-1635 after the Huguenots badly damaged it in 1561 during the Wars of Religion
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
.
The cathedral is part of the World Heritage Sites of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France
World Heritage Sites of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France
In 1998, several sites in France were added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites under the description: Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France....
.