Cathedrals of the World

Built in the 13th century in the heart of Cathar country, is the largest brick building in the world.

Dating from the late 19th and 20th centuries,

11th-century Romanesque cathedral with 14th-century Gothic additions in Bavaria, Germany

The first church on this site was probably a small chapel, built around the time Bern was founded (1191). Its existence is first recorded in 1224. On March 11, 1421, master builder Matthäus Ensinger began construction on a monumental new cathedral to take its place

Archaeological excavations beneath the cathedral have revealed ruins of a church dating from the 5th-6th century, shortly after the Puglian region was converted to Christianity

Construction began in 1195.The new Cathedral of Bourges was finally dedicated on May 13, 1324, but the north tower was still incomplete. This was finished by the end of the 15th century.

The Holy Savior Cathedral was not originally built to be a cathedral - it obtained that status only in the 19th century

Cathedral of St. Michael was completed circa 1047

Originally founded in 602 AD by St. Augustine, it still functions as the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury

It was built between 1475 and 1479 AD by the Italian architect Aristotele Fioravanti.

May be the largest Orthodox church in the world. The building is magnificent, but not as old as it looks: it was rebuilt in 2000 after the original was demolished by Stalin.

The present stone cathedral was begun in 1172 after the conquest of Dublin by Strongbow (a.k.a. Richard de Clare), a Norman baron.

Is the holiest Christian site in the world. It stands on a site that encompasses both Golgotha, or Calvary, where Jesus was crucified, and the tomb (sepulchre) where he was buried. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre has been an important pilgrimage destination since the 4th century.

In the city of Durham, in northeast England, was founded in 1093

The Abbey of St. Peter in Gloucester was founded in 681 AD by the Saxon king Osric.

The first chapel in this part of San Francisco was built in the Gold Rush year of 1849 and named Grace Church. It was rebuilt twice, and the third incarnation was so grand that it came to be referred to as "Grace Cathedral

The cathedral of Gurk was built between 1140 and 1200 on the site of Hemma's church

The Domkirche of Innsbruck was rebuilt in 1717-24 by Baroque architect Johann Jakob Herkommer. The church suffered heavy damage in World War II, but has since been restored.

According to legend, this site was home to a mosque that was converted to a cathedral after the city was conquered by Crusaders in 1147

Lucca Cathedral was consecrated in 1070 by Pope Alexander II, formerly the Bishop of Lucca

The cathedral was built as a tribute to the Grand Duke, Nicholas I, the Tsar of Russia

The Cathedral of Mainz dates from 975 AD but was continually rebuilt and restored, reaching its present form mainly in the 13th and 14th centuries

The late 17th-century St. Paul's Cathedral in Mdina stands on the traditional site of the house of the governor Publius, who received St. Paul when he was shipwrecked on Malta

Construction on the Mitrópoli began on Christmas Day in 1842 with the laying of the cornerstone by King Otto and Queen Amalia

Begun in 1163 and mostly completed by 1250, Notre Dame is an important example of French Gothic architecture, sculpture and stained glass.

Plzen Cathedral was built in 1292

The original church, on a rotunda plan, was founded by "good king" St. Wenceslas (of Christmas carol fame) in 925. This was replaced with a Romanesque basilica in the late 11th century.

Construction on Puebla Cathedral began around 1535

The first record of a cathedral in Regensburg dates from about 700 AD

The Rock of Cashel (also known as Cashel of the Kings) in County Tipperary is home to the ruins of a great Celtic cathedral

Rouen Cathedral was rebuilt in 1145 by Bishop Hugues d'Amiens. In 1892 and 1893, Claude Monet could usually be found with his canvas set up next to the cathedral's facade.

Ruvo di Puglia Cathedral was built in the 13th century

This site has hosted a Christian church since 774. The original was replaced with a late-Romanesque structure built in 1181-1200.

One of the finest Romanesque churches in Spain. Construction began in 1060 in the reign of Alfonso VI and was completed in 1211.

Once the largest and most important church in Scotland, St Andrew's Cathedral (1160-1318) now lies in picturesque ruins overlooking the North Sea.

St. Basil's was built to commemorate the capture of the Tatar stronghold of Kazan in 1552

St. David's Cathedral in Wales, one of Britain's oldest cathedrals, stands on the site of a 6th-century monastery founded by Dewi (David), a Celtic Christian monk.

The Gothic cathedral was first built in 1147 AD

This first church, a modest affair, was probably in use for several centuries before a new one was founded in the 1120s.

Opened by the Jesuits who have had a church here since as early as 1608. Today's structure dates from 1910.

It was completed in 1849 and extended in 1873

It has been the seat of the Archbishop of Venice since 1807

The present St. Mark's Coptic Cathedral is of recent date, but is said to stand on the site of church founded by St. Mark himself

The site of St. Patrick's Cathedral is said to be the earliest Christian site in Ireland, where St. Patrick baptized converts

The present St. Paul's Cathedral, which was built between 1675 and 1710, is the fourth cathedral to occupy the site

After fire again destroyed the replacement church in 1060, it was rebuilt by 1089 and became a place of refuge for a plague-stricken population

The lowermost stages of the west towers belong to the 12th century, but the rest of the west end is in the profusely detailed Flamboyant Gothic of the 15th century

Begun in 1287, Uppsala Cathedral replaced the old, smaller cathedral in Gamla Uppsala. Intended to upstage the colossal Nidaros Cathedral in Norway, it took over a century to complete

Uspenski Cathedral was built between 1862 and 1868

The first church was built near the wells in 705 and the present cathedral building was begun in 1180. It is one of the most impressive of the English cathedrals and has survived eight centuries with all its associated buildings still around it, including Vicars' Close, possibly the oldest surviving residential street in Europe.

The site on which the cathedral stands originally belonged to the Benedictine monks who founded Westminster Abbey. Since then, it has been variously used as a market, a garden, a waste dump, and a prison. The property was acquired by the Catholic Church in 1884.