Valence Cathedral
{{Short description|Cathedral in Drôme, France}}
{{Infobox religious building
| building_name = Valence Cathedral
Cathédrale Saint-Apollinaire de Valence
| image = Cathédrâle Saint-Apollinaire de Valence (Drôme).JPG
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| caption = Valence Cathedral, view from Place des Ormeaux
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| location = Valence
| geo = {{coord|44|55|54|N|4|53|22|E|type:landmark_region:FR|display=title}}
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| religious_affiliation = Catholic Church
| rite = Catholic
| region = Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
| state = France
| province = Bishop of Valence
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| status = Minor basilica
| functional_status = Active
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| architecture_type = Church
| architecture_style = Romanesque
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| groundbreaking = 11th century
| year_completed = 19th century
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Valence Cathedral ({{langx|fr|Cathédrale Saint-Apollinaire de Valence}}) is a Catholic church, dedicated to Saint Apollinaris of Valence, in Valence, France. It is the seat of the Bishop of Valence. It was elevated to the status of a minor basilica in 1847. The cathedral is in the Romanesque architectural tradition. It has been classified as a historical monument since 1862.
History
File:Valence cathedrale 2004-08-31 003.jpg
Valence Cathedral was originally dedicated to Saints Pope Cornelius and Cyprian (third-century martyrs, respectively Bishops of Rome and of Carthage).
It was a stopover church on the road to Santiago de Compostela. In 1095 during a visit to France, Pope Urban II rededicated the cathedral to Saint Apollinaris, one of Valence's sixth-century bishops.Cahn, Walter; [https://books.google.com/books?id=fLs-iKyChYIC&q=Valence+Cathedral%27%27The&pg=PA68 Romanesque Wooden Doors of Auvergne, NYU Press, 1974] {{ISBN|9780814713570}}, p. 68.
The architecture of this cathedral is similar to other monuments in Auvergne and Velay, in particular the polychrome stone decorations.[https://www.valence-romans-tourisme.com/en/catalog/detail/valence-2971053/la-cathedrale-saint-apollinaire-121179/ "Saint Apollinaire Cathedral", Valence Romans Tourisme]. The apse is surrounded by four semi-circular chapels.[https://books.google.com/books?id=H_Y8AAAAIAAJ&dq=Valence+Cathedral&pg=PA112 Byzantine and Romanesque Architecture, CUP Archive, p. 112].
It suffered extensive damage in the French Wars of Religion, but it was restored in the first decade of the 17th century.[https://curate.nd.edu/show/6969z032730 Curate.nd.edu: Valence Cathedral].
Pope Pius VI, who had been taken prisoner and deported from Italy by troops of the French Directory, was imprisoned in the fortress of Valence. After six weeks he died there, on 29 August 1799.{{Cite book |author=Pietro Baldassari |title=Relazione delle avversità e patimenti del glorioso Papa Pio VI, negli ultimi tre anni del suo pontificato |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UeJAAAAAYAAJ |volume=Tomo IV |year=1843 |publisher=dalla reale tip - degli Eredi Soliani |location=Modena |language=it |pages=284–292}} {{cite book |author=Alexis Francois Artaud de Montor |title=The Lives and Times of the Popes |url=https://archive.org/details/livesandtimespo00amergoog |year=1911 |publisher=Catholic Publication Society of America |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/livesandtimespo00amergoog/page/n320 304]-310}} The church contains his monument.
The cathedral was granted the status of minor basilica on 4 May 1847.[https://gcatholic.org/churches/france/0151.htm Basilique-Cathédrale Saint-Apollinaire] The porch and the stone tower above it were rebuilt in 1861.[https://religiana.com/valence-cathedral Religiana.com: Valence Cathedral].
File:Valence Cathédrale Saint-Apollinaire 150352.JPG|View down the nave looking east
File:Valence StApollinaire Abside.JPG|Apse
File:Valence-StApollinaire-CollateralSud.jpg|Vaulted roof of the nave
References
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External links
{{Commons category|Cathédrale Saint-Apollinaire de Valence|Valence Cathedral}}
- {{Structurae|id=20015389|title=Valence Cathedral}}
{{Catholic Church in France|state=collapsed}}
{{Basilicas in France}}
{{Authority control}}