Notre-Dame Basilica

Notre-Dame Basilica (French: Basilique Notre-Dame de Montréal) is a basilica in the historic district of Old Montreal, in Montreal Quebec, Canada. The church is located at 116 Notre Dame Street West, facing Place d'Armes, at the corner of Saint Sulpice Street.

The church's Gothic Revival architecture is among the most dramatic in the world; its interior is grand and colourful, its ceiling is coloured deep blue and decorated with golden stars, and the rest of the sanctuary is a polychrome of blues, azures, reds, purples, silver, and gold. It is filled with hundreds of intricate wooden carvings and several religious statues. Unusual for a church, the stained glass windows along the walls of the sanctuary do not depict biblical scenes, but rather scenes from the religious history of Montreal. It also has a Casavant Frères pipe organ, which comprises four keyboards, 97 stops, almost 7000 individual pipes and a pedal board.¹

History

In 1657, the Roman Catholic Sulpician Order arrived in Ville-Marie, now known as Montreal; six years later the seigneury of the island was vested in them. They ruled until 1840. The parish they founded was dedicated to the Holy Name of Mary, and the parish church of Notre-Dame was built on the site in 1672.

By 1824 the congregation had completely outgrown the church, and James O'Donnell, an Irish-American Protestant from New York, was commissioned to design the new building. O'Donnell was a proponent of the Gothic Revival architectural movement, and designed the church as such. He is the only person buried in the church's crypt. O'Donnell converted to Catholicism on his deathbed perhaps due to the realization that he might not be allowed to be buried in his church.²

The sanctuary was finished in 1830, and the first tower in 1843. On its completion, the church was the largest in North America.

Because of the splendour and grand scale of the church, a more intimate chapel, Chapelle du Sacré-Coeur (Chapel of the Sacred Heart), was built behind it, along with some offices and a sacristy. It was completed in 1888.

Recent events

Arson destroyed the Sacré-Coeur Chapel on December 7, 1978. It was rebuilt with the first two levels being reproduced from old drawings and photographs, with modern vaulting and reredos and an immense bronze altarpiece by Quebec sculptor Charles Daudelin.

Notre-Dame Church was raised to the status of basilica by Pope John Paul II during a visit to the city on April 21, 1982.

Public access

The basilica offers musical programming of choral and organ performances. It is a tradition among many Montrealers to attend the annual performance of Handel's Messiah every December at Christmas.

The basilica now charges a $5.00 entry fee fo\\mht show detailing the history of the church, is also offered in the evening, Tuesday through Saturday (tickets are $10 for adults [18+], $9 for seniors, and $5 for children and young adults).

Photos

See also

References

^ www.patrimoine-religieux.qc.ca - Religious heritage of Quebec
^ "The Old Seminary and Notre-Dame Basilica" (HTML). Old Montreal Web site. Retrieved on 2008-03-21.
^ "Justin Trudeau's eulogy", Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, CBC.ca (2000-10-03). Retrieved on 28 August 2008.
^ "Celine Dion and Rene Angelil's Wedding". Lovetripper. Retrieved on 2008-08-28.

Rémillard, François (1992). Old Montreal - A Walking Tour, Ministère des Affaires culturelles du Québec.
Livesey, Herbert Bailey (2003). Frommer's 2004 Montreal & Quebec City, Frommer's, 104. ISBN 0764541242.