Tours Cathedral
Tours Cathedral is a Gothic church, which is dedicated to St. Gatianus, the first bishop of Tours. It is the Archbishop of Tours, Bernard- Nicolas Aubertin OCist seat.
Architectural History
A first church was built around 338. No later than the 6th century it was burned down and was replaced by a new magnificent building, the consecrated Gregory of Tours, 590.
In the early 12th century a third, Romanesque bishop's church, but already in 1166 was destroyed by fire. Although she was restored, but the quality of the construction and the stones used was so bad that she was at the beginning of the 13th century largely dilapidated
Thus began around 1220/1230 with the construction of a new cathedral, which was built over the earlier buildings as basilica. In 1280, the choir and apse were completed under the direction of Étienne de Mortagne, but already in 1267 were solemnly the relics of St. Maurice and his companions had been transferred to the Church. 1465 the building was vaulted. The transept and the first two bays of the nave were built by Simon du Mans, the remaining yokes of Jean de Dammartin. The North and South tower were completed in 1509 or 1507, they are 70 meters high. Both end with a space surrounded by four Eckfialen octagon from Renaissance helmets and lanterns. They were Decoration is the architect Pierre Valence.
Specifications
The building, with its 70 meter high towers dating from the 16th century was built on a slight hill to protect the cathedral from floods of the Loire. Due to the long construction period (completion of the choir in 1260, the nave in 1440 ), the cathedral represents all stages of development of the Gothic through to the late Gothic, 1426-1547, designed by the architects Jean de Dammartin, Jean Papin and Jean Durand facade. This applies with its rich jewelry factory, the broken arc fields, leaf ornate gables and Archivolts with Bogengehängen and numerous pinnacles and niches as one of the most magnificent and richest examples of the Flamboyant style.
The spacious interior is particularly in the long choir, whose upper wall appears completely dissolved by a triforium and the high stained-glass windows of the apse, flooded with light, light and elegant. At the same time this sechsjochige, five naves and three-storey part of the cathedral with a clear height of 29 meters monumental dimensions. The achtjochige nave is a little narrower and looks compact.
North of the cathedral is the three-nave cloister " La Psalette " ( Choir School ).
- Length of the nave: 90 meters
- Width of the nave: 32 meters
- Height of the nave: 29 meters
- Length of the transept: 48 meters
- Width of the transept: 10 meters
- Height of the transept: 29 meters
- Height of the towers: 70 meters
Equipment and windows
1562 devastated the iconoclastic Huguenots Saint- Gatien, destroying the portal statues that have remained unersetzt. 36 now located in the cathedral sculptures were made around 1850 by the sculptor Toussaint.
The glass windows represent the most remarkable part of the cathedral represents the 15 magnificent windows of the apse and the underlying of the triforium was used 1265-1270. Your stained glass tell legends of the saints, illustrate the creation of the world and the Passion of Christ and represent the bishops of Tours represents the rose window of the facade dates from the 15th, the transept from the 14th century.
In the first south choir chapel, the marble grave is high (early 16th century) for Charles- Orland and Charles, sons of Charles VIII
Organ
The organ is in parts back to an instrument from 1521, of which today comes the organ case. The instrument was restored several times over the years and also enhanced approximately in 1762 to a positive feedback and an echo work. 1928-1929, the instrument was again completely reorganized and equipped with electro- pneumatic actions. The instrument has 56 registers on three manuals and pedal today.