Construction started 1890 Opened 1892 Phone +1 250-388-5571 | Country Canada Completed 1892 Architect Maurice Perrault | |
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Location 740 View StreetVictoria, British ColumbiaV8W 1J8 Similar Christ Church Cathedral, St Ann's Academy, Church of Our Lord, Emily Carr House, Craigflower Manor and Schoolhouse | ||
St. Andrew's Cathedral is the Roman Catholic cathedral for the diocese of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada. Built in the High Victorian Gothic style, St. Andrew's was Victoria's third cathedral to be built. (The first, 1858–1884, is now the Chapel of St. Ann's Academy on Humboldt Street; the second, 1884–1892, was on the site behind the current building now occupied by the St. Andrew's Square office building.)
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Construction for the new cathedral began in 1890. At 8:00a.m. on October 30, 1892, Bishop Jean-Nicolas Lemmens blessed the building before celebrating a Pontifical High Mass at 10:00a.m. The cathedral has been a National Historic Site of Canada since 1990.
Architecture
Based on the plans for a church built in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Quebec, Perrault and Mesnard borrowed much from the medieval architecture of European churches. The double asymmetrical towers are typical of Quebec churches and a characteristic of the High Victorian Gothic style. This was an attempt to follow the "unfinished" look that made fourteenth and fifteenth century churches popular.
The nave is seventy-two feet long, with a rose window. The main tower boasts a 175 ft (53 m) spire that was designed to hold a clock and a set of bells.
Altar
An altar was commissioned for use on the twenty-fifth anniversary of Bishop Remi Joseph De Roo's episcopal ordination. Carved by Charles W. Elliott, the first Native American to graduate from St. Louis College, the altar consists of two bentwood boxes. The boxes can be rotated to show four separate designs for the different liturgical seasons. The top of the altar or is carved from yellow cedar (Nootka Cypress) and weighs approximately four hundred pounds.
Lectern
The cathedral also displays a carved lectern by artist Roy Henry Vickers. It depicts a black and red image of Christ, representing the crucified Christ and the risen Christ.
Crypt
The cathedral houses a crypt, where three of Victoria's former Bishop(s) are interred:
Artwork
The Institute for stained glass in Canada has documented the stained glass at St Andrew's Catholic Cathedral. The cathedral houses 21 large Portland-style stained glass windows and two large rose windows with a smaller one above the gallery.