Bilbao Cathedral, Bilbao, Spain

Santiago Cathedral of Bilbao was originally built during the 14th-15th centuries as Bilbao's main parish church, and was only declared cathedral in 1950 when the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bilbao was officially created. Its origins probably date to well before the foundation of the city in 1300, when Bilbao was little more than a small enclave of fishermen.

The church is consecrated in honor of the apostle Saint James the Great (Santiago), by virtue of being a point of transit for the pilgrims that followed the Northern branch of the Way of Saint James.

Architecturally, the present building is a mixture of styles: from the 15th century Gothic of the cloister and the main vault, where of special interest are the cloister and the beautiful portal that gives access Correo street (Puerta del Angel), to the ostentatious Gothic Revival façade and spire.

A curious custom is the addition of stone carvings of local merchants along the buttresses of the main vault.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Dominik Komarnicki (3 years ago)
Fantastic piece of Old Bilbao. Definitely worth seeing.

Outtah kush (3 years ago)
Get the history first then you'll decide t pay a visit to the cathedral.

Amit Parekh (3 years ago)
Nice place.

Armin Halarseck GmbH (4 years ago)
The entire area is absolutely stunning. Getting lost in the Bilbao Oldtown is a thing. Eat and drink your way through the little streets of Bilbao

joby akkara (4 years ago)
Wonderful construction

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright itmpa

Historic Site of the week

Dryburgh Abbey

Dryburgh Abbey on the banks of the River Tweed in the Scottish Borders was founded in 1150 in an agreement between Hugh de Morville, Constable of Scotland, and the Premonstratensian canons regular from Alnwick Abbey in Northumberland. The arrival of the canons along with their first abbot, Roger, took place in 1152.

It was burned by English troops in 1322, after which it was restored only to be again burned by Richard II in 1385, but it flourished in the fifteenth century. It was finally destroyed in 1544, briefly surviving until the Scottish Reformation, when it was given to the Earl of Mar by James VI of Scotland. It is now a designated scheduled monument and the surrounding landscape is included in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland.

David Erskine, 11th Earl of Buchan bought the land in 1786. Sir Walter Scott and Douglas Haig are buried in its grounds.

Bilbao Cathedral

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Historic Site of the week

Dryburgh Abbey