St. James' Cathedral
Sign in to saveAlso known as Catedral de Santiago (Bilbao)
cultural property in Bilbao, Spain
Key facts
- Location
- Bilbao
- Address
- 1, Done Jakue Plazatxoa
- Country
- Spain
- Denomination
- Catholic
- Website
- catedralbilbao .com
- Status
- Cathedral
- Dedication
- James the Great
- Dedicated
- 30 December 1955
- Style
- Gothic , Gothic Revival
- Groundbreaking
- 14th Century
- Completed
- 15th Century
- Metropolis
- Burgos
- Diocese
- Bilbao
- Bishop
- Joseba Segura Etxezarraga
- Criteria
- Cultural: (ii), (iv), (vi)
- Designated
- 2015 (39th session )
- Part of
- Routes of Santiago de Compostela: Camino Francés and Routes of Northern Spain
- Reference no
- 669bis-010
via Wikipedia infobox
~2 min read
Encyclopedic overview
The Cathedral Basilica of Saint James (Spanish: Basílica Catedral de Santiago; Basque: Done Jakue Basilika-Katedrala) is a Catholic cathedral in Bilbao, Spain. It is dedicated to the apostle James the Great, by virtue of being a point of transit for the pilgrims that followed the Northern Way of the Camino de Santiago. In 2015, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site together several other buildings along the route.
The temple was originally built between the 14th and 15th centuries as the city's main parish church, and as such, it is one the oldest extant buildings in Bilbao. It was built on the site of a previous temple with its origins probably date to well before the foundation of the city in 1300, when Bilbao was little more than a small enclave of fishermen. In 1819, it was declared a minor basilica. The tower with spire and west portico, designed by local architect Severino de Achúcarro, were concluded in 1887. It was elevated to cathedral status on 30 December 1955, after the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bilbao was officially created.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “St. James' Cathedral” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.