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Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Bazas

Bazas

Dimensions
On the vast place de la Cathédrale, lined with arcaded houses, in the heart of the medieval town built on a rocky spur; behind the chevet, the Jardin du Chapitre overlooks the old ramparts
Period
Bishop of Bazas mentioned by Gregory of Tours in the 5th century, at the time of the Vandal invasion; Romanesque church c. 1070 according to Mérimée; Gothic cathedral begun in 1233, work continuing until 1372 according to Wikipedia, completed at the end of the 15th century according to Mérimée; facade finished in 1537; sacked by the Calvinists in 1561, destroyed in 1577–1578 except for the facade; rebuilt from 1583 to 1635; side aisles finished in 1598–1599; crowning of the facade remade in the 18th century (pediment of 1725 after a hurricane according to Wikipedia, upper part restored in 1745 after lightning according to Mérimée); bishopric suppressed at the Revolution and divided in 1801 between Bordeaux, Agen and Aire; listed (classé) on the 1840 list; inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998 as part of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela
What stands there
The people of Bazas paid 10,000 écus to save the facade when the Calvinists destroyed their cathedral

Gregory of Tours relates a singular story: a lady of Bazas, having come to Jerusalem, is said to have collected the blood of Saint John the Baptist in a flask at the moment of his beheading, then to have brought it back to her town, where she is said to have placed it in the church of Saint-Jean; it is to this relic that the cathedral owes its dedication. The same Gregory mentions a Bishop of Bazas at the time of the Vandal invasion, in the 5th century, and Bishop Sextilius was represented at the Council of Agde in 506 before sitting at that of Orléans in 511. The Gothic cathedral, whose foundation stone was laid in 1233, rose slowly; its west front was not finished until 1537, around three sculpted 13th-century portals: the Last Judgement in the centre, with scenes from the life of the Baptist, the Coronation of the Virgin to the south, Saint Peter to the north, the whole peopled with some 290 statues. In 1561 the Calvinists took the town and sacked the church; returning in 1577 and 1578, they destroyed it, except for the facade, for whose preservation the inhabitants paid 10,000 écus. Bishop Arnaud de Pontac raised the building again between 1583 and 1605; his brother Geoffroi, président at the Parlement of Bordeaux, and the latter's son completed the work in 1635. In the 18th century the facade lost its crowning once more, carried away by a hurricane or by lightning according to the sources, and received the scrolled pediment to be seen today. The bishopric disappeared at the Revolution. Pilgrims on the Vézelay route, one of the ways to Santiago de Compostela, still pass in front of this redeemed facade.

Wikipédia — Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Bazas ↗

Further reading

Getting there : Place de la Cathédrale, 33430 Bazas. Open from 9 am to 6 pm, subject to services, according to the Tourisme France guide (to be checked); market on the square on Saturday mornings. The Jardin du Chapitre, behind the cathedral, opens onto the ramparts (access conditions to be checked).

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

See it on the map OpenStreetMap Directions

Ambient sound

Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Bazas
Szeder László · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Nearby

In the same department

All places — Gironde (23).