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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Cathedral in Bazas, in the Gironde department, was the seat of the diocese of Bazas until the French Revolution. According to Grégoire de Tours, a bishop of Bazas was mentioned as early as the fifth century, and the cathedral was said to have been dedicated to Saint John the Baptist after a lady from Bazas reported a relic of her blood. The building, destroyed by the Normans in 853, was rebuilt from 1070 under the impulse of Bishop Raymond II, with a consecration by Pope Urban II in 1095. The Romanesque cathedral was then replaced by a Gothic building, whose first stone was laid in 1233.

The building was built over several centuries, marked by royal gifts and conflicts, such as the destruction of the Calvinists in 1561, 1577 and 1578, which destroyed much of the building, saving only the facade thanks to the payment of ECU 10 000 by the inhabitants. The reconstruction, carried out between 1583 and 1635 under Bishop Arnaud de Pontac, was completed with the financial help of his family. In 1723, a hurricane damaged the facade, whose crowning was restored in 1725. The cathedral, listed as a Historic Monument in 1840, was also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998 for its role in the roads of Compostela.

The characteristic western façade consists of three levels: the 13th century gates, a flamboyant 16th century rose attributed to Mathelin Gallopin, and a crown rebuilt in the 18th century. The tympanums of the portals illustrate biblical scenes, such as the Last Judgment (central gate), the Coronation of the Virgin (south gate) and the life of Saint Peter (north gate). These sculptures, as well as the vestments decorated with holy and angelic figures, testify to the iconographic richness of the building.

Inside, without transept, presents a long Gothic vessel enlarged in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The absidial chapels and pillars of the sanctuary date from the 14th century, while the lower sides were completed in 1598-1599. The current organ, installed in 1983, incorporates elements of the 19th century and has 26 games. The cathedral, today cocathedral of the Archdiocese of Bordeaux, also retains a Latin inscription commemorating the completion of the works in 1635.

The diocese of Bazas, abolished in 1801, was symbolically restored in 1937, allowing the archbishop of Bordeaux to also bear the title of bishop of Bazas. This status reflects the historical importance of the cathedral, linked to figures such as Gregory of Tours, which evoked its legendary origins, or Clement V, which granted indulgences for its reconstruction in the 14th century. The Wars of Religion and successive restorations shaped its architecture, mixing Romanesque, Gothic and classical styles.

Future

The cathedral is one of the 71 monuments as well as 7 portions of paths have been inscribed since 1998 on the UNESCO World Heritage List under the official title of "Chemins de Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle en France".

It is on the way to Via Lemovicensis, the so-called "de Vézelay" or limousine road.

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