Carcassonne Cathedral

The Saint -Michel de Carcassonne Cathedral is the city of Carcassonne ( Aude department) region in southern France today's Cathedral. However, it has never achieved the same meaning as the former cathedral St- Nazaire et St. Celse in the Cité.

Location

The cathedral stands in the lower city of Carcassonne ( ville- basse ), between Boulevard Barbes and Rue Voltaire.

Architectural History

The church was built from 1262 to 1283 as a simple parish church and has been built in the style of typical regional gothique méridional. After devastation caused by the soldiers of the ' Black Prince ' ( Edward of Woodstock ) in 1355, repairs and minor changes were made. Existing since the 6th century - - As part of the Concordat of 1801, the church was the cathedral of the Diocese of Carcassonne charged. Middle of the 19th century established a fire to devastating damage to the building fabric, so that Viollet -le- Duc and his assistants was almost 20 years busy with their elimination.

Architecture

The west side of today's Episcopal Church is of a low-lying portal with tympanum and dominates a beautiful Gothic rose window. City side, Saint Michel has a squat tower, which is converted from square to an octagon. As a special feature, the position of the Church is to see: from the Boulevard of some steps are to descend, as the cathedral was once involved in the fortifications of the city - remains of which can be seen on the south side.

The interior of the cathedral today as a broad but relatively darker -nave structure whose side walls - as is customary in many churches of the Midi - open chapels. The nave wall is curiously pierced by round windows. The cathedral is completed to the east toward of a three-part apsis with beautiful stained glass windows.

While the Capitals have only simple abstract- vegetable ornaments, some column bases are provided with leaf tongues and animal representations.

Equipment

Altar

The most important part of the church is the equipment - created in the years 1736-1746 by Jean -Baptiste Peru II from Avignon - retable consisting of two beautiful marble angels and a tabernacle with the four beasts of the Apocalypse ( Tetramorph ). A balustrade is made of reddish marble from Caunes -Minervois.

Organ

The present organ was built in 1860 by Aristide Cavaillé- Coll and situated on the newly built gallery in a Neo-Gothic housing. This instrument has been restored several times, most recently in 1998. It has 42 registers on three manuals and pedal. The play and Registertrakturen are mechanical.