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45-524: It is located in the city center, overlooking Plaza de Mayo , on the corner of San Martín and Rivadavia streets, in the San Nicolás neighbourhood . It is the mother church of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires and held the rank of Primatial church of Argentina from 1822 to 2024. The cathedral was declared National Historic Monument in 1942. When Juan de Garay arrived from Asunción to found

90-455: A public building for business transactions. It had a wide central area, with aisles separated by columns, and with windows near the ceiling. Old St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is an early church which had this form. It was built in the 4th century on the orders of Roman emperor Constantine I , and replaced in the 16th century. The nave, the main body of the building, is the section set apart for

135-469: A sum he requested from the royal treasury. In the person of the excellent governor Don José Martínez de Salazar , the bishop found someone who would collaborate in the construction of the temple not only with his influence, but even with money of his own. In 1671 the cathedral was finished, it consisted of three naves, a wooden roof and a tower, it was of regular proportions. But behold, a work with so many appearances of solidity, after seven years, because of

180-558: A width comparable to the central nave, the structure is sometimes said to have three naves. It provides the central approach to the high altar . The term nave is from navis , the Latin word for ship , an early Christian symbol of the Church as a whole, with a possible connection to the " Ship of St. Peter " or the Ark of Noah . The term may also have been suggested by the keel shape of

225-511: Is a Latin cross building with transept and three-aisles with side chapels connected by corridors. Originally the interior was only decorated with altarpieces, but at the end of the 19th century the walls and ceilings of the church were decorated with frescoes depicting biblical scenes painted the Italian Francesco Paolo Parisi . In 1907, the floor of the cathedral was covered with Venetian-style mosaics designed by

270-527: Is a city square and the main foundational site of Buenos Aires , Argentina . It was formed in 1884 after the demolition of the Recova building, unifying the city's Plaza Mayor and Plaza de Armas , by that time known as Plaza de la Victoria and Plaza 25 de Mayo, respectively. The city centre of Buenos Aires, Plaza de Mayo has been the scene of the most momentous events in Argentine history , as well as

315-567: Is dated April 6, 1620 and its execution took place on June 26, 1622 by its first bishop, the Carmelite friar Pedro Carranza, in a solemn meeting with the authorities and the people, which means that on that date he took possession of the diocese. The bishop in his letter of May 4 of that same year he wrote to the king: "it is so indecent (the cathedral) that in Spain there are places in the fields of shepherds and cattle more comfortable and clean; in

360-591: Is in the Province of the Río de la Plata , again called Nueva Vizcaya, I make and found in the said seat and port a city, which 'local people' [translating 'pueblo'] with soldiers and people that I have and have brought for it, the church of which I put its dedication of the Holy Trinity, which is and will be the major parish church contained and marked in the square that I have made of the said city [...]" . Regarding

405-609: Is quite well conserved and its intonation was preserved as close as possible to the original. It is currently recognised as one of the finest Walcker Organs ever manufactured. The Cathedral itself could be considered as a pictorial museum as well. E.g., for the Calvarium (14 stations, always present in any catholic church), there are 14 magnificent pictures, made "al óleo", this is, with oil painting and traditional canvas, all originals, with dimensions of more than 1.5 by 1 metre (4 ft 11 in by 3 ft 3 in) each. In 1880,

450-775: Is where the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo have congregated with signs and pictures of desaparecidos , their children, who were subject to forced disappearance by the Argentine military in the Dirty War , during the National Reorganization Process . People perceived to be supportive of subversive activities (that would include expressing left-wing ideas, or having any link with these people, however tenuous) would be illegally detained, subject to abuse and torture, and finally murdered in secret. The Mothers of

495-513: The Cabildo , Justice and Regiment of the city lost heart and immediately chartered a ship to Paraguay to acquire and bring the necessary wood for the rebuilding of the temple. The work began in January 1618. According to the budget of Pascual Ramírez, who would carry out the work, the cost would be 1,100 pesos . We do not have exact information on the collection of the money, but we do know that by

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540-541: The Holy Trinity in its canopy . Another notable colonial sculpture is the Christ of Buenos Aires , a large image of the crucified Christ located in the altarpiece of the lateral arm of the transept. The statue was carved by Portuguese sculptor Manuel do Coyto in 1671 and is the oldest in the cathedral. According to the faithful, it has miraculously saved the city from a flood in the 18th century. The two pulpits of

585-451: The vaulting of a church. In many Nordic and Baltic countries a model ship is commonly found hanging in the nave of a church, and in some languages the same word means both 'nave' and 'ship', as for instance Danish skib , Swedish skepp , Dutch schip or Spanish nave . The earliest churches were built when builders were familiar with the form of the Roman basilica ,

630-951: The General. The mausoleum also has the remains of Generals Juan Gregorio de las Heras and Tomás Guido , as well as those of the Unknown Soldier of the Independence . Pope Francis was the Archbishop of Buenos Aires for 15 years. Then known as Archbishop Jorge Bergoglio, he used to hold mass at this cathedral before moving to the Vatican in 2013. The cathedral houses the Pope Francis Museum , which holds some of his personal and liturgical objects. Plaza de Mayo The Plaza de Mayo ( Spanish pronunciation: [ˈplasa ðe ˈmaʃo] ; English: May Square )

675-587: The Italian Carlo Morra. Repair work for the entire floor was started in 2004 and completed in 2010. The cathedral still has some elements dating from colonial times. The most important is the main gilt wood altarpiece in Rococo style, dating from 1785 and executed by Spanish sculptor Isidro Lorea. The altarpiece occupies the main chapel and has a statue of the Virgin Mary and a representation of

720-536: The Plaza de Mayo took advantage of the symbolic importance of the Plaza to open the public's eyes to what the military regime was doing. Protests have continued taking place, with the major last one being during the December 2001 riots when five protesters were killed and several others injured by police as they rioted around the Plaza de Mayo. Today, Plaza de Mayo continues to be an indispensable tourist attraction for those who visit Buenos Aires. Several of

765-427: The Plaza. Nave The nave ( / n eɪ v / ) is the central part of a church , stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts , or in a church without transepts, to the chancel . When a church contains side aisles , as in a basilica -type building, the strict definition of the term "nave" is restricted to the central aisle. In a broader, more colloquial sense,

810-585: The cathedral, in transitional Rococo-Neoclassical style, were created in 1789-1790 by the Spanish sculptor Juan Antonio Gaspar Hernández, who would later (1799) direct the first art school of Buenos Aires. An 1871 Walcker organ (Opus 263) is at the chorus section. It has more than 3500 pipes, and was made in Germany with the finest materials available at that time. Titular Organist is Mr. Enrique Rimoldi, who offers periodically organ concerts for free. This organ

855-435: The church there is no sacristy, but an old, short and indecent one of reeds, raining all over itself, with a great poverty of ornaments. " "The Blessed Sacrament is in a rough and poorly standing wooden box. " "And as far as the building is corcerned, it is necessary to board it up and accommodate it, otherwise it will all fall to the ground and we will go to a convent church to make cathedral". This was, then, what we can call

900-525: The city of La Trinidad y Puerto de Buenos Aires on June 11, 1580, he set aside for the main church or cathedral the same quarter of a city block that it occupies today. Two brothers from the Jesuit Order , architect one and bricklayer the other completed this first cathedral, as well as several other religious buildings of this early city. In the act of foundation, made by Juan de Garay, it is read: "Being in this port of Santa María de Buenos Aires, which

945-873: The city's major landmarks are located around the Plaza: the Cabildo (the city council during the colonial era), the Casa Rosada (home of the executive branch of the federal government ), the Metropolitan Cathedral of Buenos Aires , the May Pyramid , the Equestrian monument to General Manuel Belgrano , the current city hall or municipalidad , and the headquarters of the Nación Bank. The Buenos Aires financial district ( microcentro ), affectionately known as la City (sic) also lies besides

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990-466: The colonnade separating the Plaza de la Victoria and the Plaza del Fuerte was demolished. Its origins, however, can be traced back to Juan de Garay 's foundation of Buenos Aires itself, in 1580. Newly arrived to the dusty riverbank settlement, Jesuit clergymen in 1608 secured a title to much of the 2 hectares (4.9 acres) lot, on which Garay's earlier plans for a central plaza had been abandoned. In 1661,

1035-605: The colonnade's demolition and the creation of the modern Plaza de Mayo. The Plaza de Mayo has traditionally been the focal point of political life in Buenos Aires. Its current name commemorates the May Revolution of 1810, which started the process towards the country's independence from Spain in 1816. On October 17, 1945, mass demonstrations in the Plaza de Mayo organized by the CGT trade union federation forced

1080-572: The ecclesiastical jurisdiction, during this century the new city depended on, the diocese of the Río de la Plata (in today's Paraguay ), created by Pope Paul III on July 1, 1547 with seat in Asunción . The major parish church was a modest construction with adobe and wood walls, had two towers that gave the current Avenida Rivadavia the former name of Calle de las Torres, which in 1605 Governor Hernandarias ordered to demolish for being too old and indecent. We do not know what proportions would have

1125-594: The end of that same year the work on the church was finished. But there was a difficulty: it was smaller than the previous one, so much so that in 1621 there was already talk of building another one to be used as a cathedral. In the meantime, in Madrid and in Rome , the procedures for the creation of the Diocese of Buenos Aires were being carried out. The bull of canonical erection of this church as cathedral by Pope Paul V

1170-514: The façade and the sacristy still to be completed. In the early 18th century the works were slow, and the first tower was finished only around 1721. The second tower was begun in 1722 and finished around 1725. The main façade was redesigned between 1725 and 1727 by the Italian Jesuit Giovanni Bianchi (also spelled Blanqui). The design of the new façade was directly inspired by Italian Mannerist architecture . On

1215-604: The façade was only finished between 1860 and 1863, when French sculptor Joseph Dubourdieu created the reliefs of the pediment. The scene represents the reunion of Joseph with his brothers and father Jacob in Egypt , and was intended as an allegory of the unity of the Argentine nation after several fratricide wars. Dubourdieu also completed the Corinthian capitals of the columns of the portico. The Cathedral of Buenos Aires

1260-463: The first cathedral. When the third bishop of Buenos Aires, Friar Cristóbal de la Mancha y Velazco arrived at his see on October 6, 1641, he found the cathedral, if not in a ruinous state, at least very deteriorated. So he immediately conceived the idea of building a new cathedral and communicated it to the king on November 19, 1662. According to the plan he enclosed, the temple was to have three naves ; for its construction, 5,000 pesos would be needed,

1305-411: The inferior quality of some materials used in its construction, began to show signs of its inevitable ruin. This is the second cathedral. Due to the bad quality of its building materials, the tower and the roof of this church fell down in the early 1680s. The whole church was again rebuilt, starting in 1684, under bishop Azcona Imberto. In 1695 the building was almost finished, with the flanking towers of

1350-476: The laity, while the chancel is reserved for the clergy. In medieval churches the nave was separated from the chancel by the rood screen ; these, being elaborately decorated, were notable features in European churches from the 14th to the mid-16th century. Medieval naves were divided into bays, the repetition of form giving an effect of great length; and the vertical element of the nave was emphasized. During

1395-686: The largest popular demonstrations in the country. On the occasion of the first anniversary of the May Revolution in 1811, the Pirámide de Mayo (English: May Pyramid ) was inaugurated in the square's hub, becoming Buenos Aires' first national monument. It is located in the financial district known as microcentro , within the barrio (English: neighborhood ) of Monserrat . It is bounded by Bolívar, Hipólito Yrigoyen, Balcarce and Avenida Rivadavia streets; and from its west side three important avenues are born: Avenida Presidente Julio Argentino Roca , Avenida Roque Sáenz Peña and Avenida de Mayo . In

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1440-474: The local governor purchased the eastern half for inclusion into the grounds of the city's new fort; this section soon became the Plaza de Armas . Following over a century of overuse and neglect, the local colonial government attempted to give a semblance of order to the plaza by having a colonnade built across it from north to south. Completed in 1804, the Romanesque structure became the plaza's market and

1485-465: The lot to the west of the colonnade became the Plaza de la Victoria . The area continued divided between these two plazas until 1883 and with only minor changes in landscaping, chief among them the 1811 addition of the May Pyramid , a monument put up to commemorate the newly independent "Provinces of the Rio de la Plata". That year, however, Mayor Torcuato de Alvear ordered the space modernized, resulting in

1530-407: The nave includes all areas available for the lay worshippers, including the side-aisles and transepts. Either way, the nave is distinct from the area reserved for the choir and clergy . The nave extends from the entry—which may have a separate vestibule (the narthex )—to the chancel and may be flanked by lower side-aisles separated from the nave by an arcade . If the aisles are high and of

1575-466: The night of May 23, 1752, the nave of the cathedral collapsed. The only portions still standing were the façade and towers, but the rest of the building needed to be completely rebuilt once again. Italian architect Antonio Masella was put in charge of the project, and the works began already in 1753. Masella designed a majestic church, much larger than the previous structure, with a three- aisled nave covered with barrel vaulting and lateral chapels. A dome

1620-492: The one that was built in its place with wood brought expressly from Paraguay . Years later, in 1616, its roof threatened to collapse and the parish, together with the Most Holy statue, had to move to the Church of San Francisco , and while projects were made to reform it, requesting for it the pecuniary contribution of the faithful, the church ended up collapsing because it was poorly built and with rotten willow wood. Neither

1665-497: The plaza was bombed during one of the populist leader's many rallies there on 16 June 1955, killing 364. Years later, in 1974, Perón, then president for the third time, expelled from the Plaza members of the Montoneros , an armed organization on the far left that had contributed to the aging leader's return from exile the previous year and had since demanded influence within the national government. Perón's final appearance at

1710-593: The plaza, on 12 June, was marked by an acrimonious break with the far left, leading to two years of violence and repression and, ultimately, a coup d'état . Crowds gathered once again on April 2, 1982, and several occasions thereafter to hail de facto President Leopoldo Galtieri for Argentina's invasion of the Falkland Islands , which launched the Falklands War ( Spanish : Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del Atlántico Sur ). The plaza, since 1977,

1755-546: The project did not advance much. It was only in 1821, under Governor Martín Rodríguez and his Minister Bernardino Rivadavia , that plans to complete the cathedral were taken seriously. Starting in 1826, French architects Prosper Catelin and Pierre Benoit built a new Neoclassical façade for the cathedral inspired by the Palais Bourbon in Paris . Construction was temporarily halted in 1827, and when it resumed, progress

1800-582: The release from prison of Juan Domingo Perón , who would later become President of Argentina; during his tenure, the Peronist movement gathered every October 17 in the Plaza de Mayo to show their support for their leader (and October 17 is still " Loyalty Day " for the traditional Peronists). Many other presidents, both democratic and military, have also saluted people in the Plaza from the Casa Rosada's balcony. In an attempt to overthrow President Perón,

1845-410: The remains of General José de San Martín were brought from France and placed in a mausoleum , reachable from the right aisle of the church. The mausoleum was specially designed by French sculptor Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse , with marble of various colours. The black sarcophagus is guarded by three life-size female figures that represent Argentina , Chile and Peru , three of the regions freed by

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1890-510: The scale of the new cathedral. An elegant project for a new façade with two flanking towers, combining Rococo and Neoclassical elements, was presented by the Portuguese military engineer José Custódio de Sá e Faria, but financial constraints prevented the realisation of the project. The cathedral was consecrated in 1779 without façade. Construction of a façade began in the early 19th century directed by Spanish architect Tomás Toribio, but

1935-751: The square's surroundings are several significant monuments and points of interest: the Cabildo , the Casa Rosada (seat of the President of Argentina ), the Metropolitan Cathedral , the Buenos Aires City Hall , and the Bank of the Argentine Nation 's headquarters. Underneath its lands are the Underground stations of Plaza de Mayo ( Line A ), Catedral ( Line D ), and Bolívar ( Line E ). The modern plaza took form in 1884 when

1980-455: Was slow until its final completion. The façade of the building consists of a tall portico , inspired by Classical architecture , with twelve columns and a triangular pediment on top. The portico lends the building the appearance of an ancient temple rather than a Catholic church. The original project did not call for towers to be built and, even though there were later plans to build two towers, they were never materialized. The decoration of

2025-429: Was to sit over the crossing . Upon completion of the dome, however, fissures in the structure were detected and it had to be rebuilt. Masella was removed from the project and prosecuted by the authorities, although later acquitted. The dome was rebuilt by Portuguese architect Manuel Álvarez de Rocha after 1770. The façade by Blanqui and the towers were finally demolished in 1778, since they were too small in comparison to

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